A Lord of Lunacy
by JessicaDwyer
Summary: Imagine being betrayed by everyone you trusted and confined behind bars for something untrue. Samantha meets someone who knows exactly how she feels, just when she needs a friend the most. When no one else can help she just might find The A-Team.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I own a Murdock figure. That's as much as I own. Any original people are mine.**

**Authors Note: I kept thinking about the movie. Specifically Murdock. Blame Copley. It's his fault for being so damn cute and insane. Blame all of them actually. A-Team ruled. Hence it ruling my need to write. I'm going to get back to Elm Street and Wonderland I promise. I just have to juggle…a lot…**

**In the meantime enjoy the first chapter of this A-Team story. I know where I want to go it may just take a bit to get there. Samantha is a fun character to write when she's wacked out of her mind on drugs. **

**Why yes this has a woman in it. Sorry, I like doing original female characters. Also Murdock is really the sexy one, and we all know it (no offense Brad Cooper, you still fine) I like crazy. Crazy is fun (see my Alice in Wonderland, Scream, Sweeney, and Freddy Krueger fics for proof of this obsession with crazy guys.) **

**And Sharlto Copley stole my soul. I take no blame for this.**

**Please review since it's the only way I know if you are reading and if you like it.**

**Chapter 1**

"Foster." The orderly called out into the rec room, holding a metal tray of tiny paper cups.

Samantha Foster cringed. She was sitting on one of the four raggedy couches that were sporadically placed in the room, staring out the window through the crisscross of bars that covered the glass. It wasn't comforting, nor was the antiseptic smell of the "hospital." Nor were the vacant stares of the majority of the patients that were sitting around her or shambling across the floor like zombies. Nothing about The Bay Ridge Mental Facility was comforting.

"FOSTER!" The orderly, a man she'd come to know was named Bubby yelled out again. This was one of the more unpleasant parts of the game. She stood, pulling her purple hooded sweatshirt tighter around herself and walked over to where the big guy waited. He stared down at her with beady brown eyes surrounded by a round face. His lips pulled back in a smile. "Took you long enough Specs." He told her, the nickname due to her glasses and his lack of imagination.

"Sorry." She muttered, trying not to provoke anything. She'd learned not to provoke, not to stand out. She had to make it through this so she could get out of here.

"Time for your candy." He jingled the tiny paper cup that he held between his fingers.

Sam obediently held out her hand and Bubby placed the pill holder there. She looked down and saw the three small meds that it held. One was blue, the other two yellow. She couldn't even pronounce their names but she knew from the one time she actually kept them down for longer than ten minutes what they did. She was not going to make that mistake again.

"Swallow for daddy." He said low so no one would hear him. It wasn't like they would care really anyway.

Sam dumped them down her throat, dry swallowing the pills in one gulp. She then showed him she had done so, flipping her tongue up to prove she wasn't hiding them. Bubby gave her another creepy look, and then she was allowed to go back to her spot on the couch.

She would wait ten minutes, go to the restroom and gag until she threw them up into the toilet. With that pleasant activity on the horizon, Sam wondered what her ass hat of a brother was up to. She wondered if her dad had finally succumbed to the cancer…and she wondered if she was ever going to get out of here. There were so many pleasant things to ponder she even wondered if she really was going nuts.

Stewart Foster, her younger brother by three years had managed to ruin her life. He'd got her committed and had taken the reigns on the family money without batting an eye. In her darker moments Samantha wondered if he was somehow responsible for her dad's cancer...

She ran slightly trembling fingers through her short auburn hair. She pulled her hand away and looked down at it. She wasn't actually insane when she was put in here, but staying in here was possibly going to drive her that way.

"Hey girlie…how goes?" An older voice asked her, pulling her from studying the shaking of her fingers. Sam looked up to see Roaring Rory Lachlan, one of the vets now housed at Bay Ridge. Rory was in his late fifties and had been at Bay Ridge for a good three months before Sam had arrived. There were vets being housed here now due to the actual Vets hospital being shut down due to unsafe conditions. Who knew how long it would take to fix all the issues she'd heard about them having.

"The same Rory." She replied giving him a sad smile. She checked the wall clock and saw she had another eight minutes before she had to make it to the bathroom.

"That good huh?" Rory settled himself next to her on the couch with a heavy sigh. He had anger management issues from PTSD and night terrors. It had gotten bad over a period of the last few years. So bad his wife had left him instead of trying to find him some help or to listen to him. Rory had nearly succeeded in a suicide attempt, but the cops had stopped him.

"I'm starting to get the shakes I think." Sam said softly, so as not to alert any of the orderlies and especially not Bubby.

Rory scratched his scraggly grey beard. "Stay strong kid. I know you aren't nuts. I mean…I think you're a little cracked, but you don't belong here." He gave her a slightly gapped smile.

Her grin lightened a bit. "Thanks Rory. I'm glad someone thinks so." Sam sighed heavily and took off her glasses, wiping them on her shirt. "How have you been doing?"

Rory stretched his legs out in front of him. "I've been getting by. Docs seem to think they can do some fixing of my noggin with shock therapy again."

Sam looked at him in horror. "Again? Jesus if it didn't work the first time why try something like that again?"

The older man laughed. "Ours is not to ask the reason why…" He gave her another grin. "It's a small price to pay for a roof over my head and food I guess. I'm better off here than I would be out on the street."

Sam was doubtful…at least the only way someone could zap you with electricity on the street was with a taser…or lightning. "It doesn't make them right…" she muttered.

He laughed again. "I've had more bolts shot through me than Frankenstein little lady. I'll be okay. Hell you never know…maybe one day it'll take."

Samantha glanced at the clock again. She only had a couple minutes left before she had to get to her gagging session. Not that she was looking forward to it.

Suddenly there was a loud commotion coming from the hallway outside the rec room. Sam and Rory both turned to see three large orderlies running towards what would be the receiving area where new patients were admitted. Two more appeared in the doorway of the room. "Stay in here, we've got a fighter out front and we don't want any of you hurt." One of them said, one of the nicer ones whose name Sam thought was Larry.

At that moment panic went through Samantha. Depending on how long this took…she'd miss her chance at getting rid of the drugs that would be hitting her system. She glanced at the clock again, standing up glancing towards the hallway. Larry was standing guard at the door while the other orderly went off to help his co-workers with the new arrival.

Sam decided to chance it; she walked towards the door and glanced around Larry who gave her a cautious look. "Hey Sam, you should really go back in there." He told her gently.

"Larry would it be okay if I ran to the bathroom down the hall. I'll be quick." She hoped it would be quick at least.

"Sorry Sam, no can do. Procedure. I don't think this will take much longer. Just hold it." He gave her a reassuring smile then looked down the hall towards where the commotion was erupting.

Samantha let out a heavy breath of air and slinked back into the rec room leaning heavily against another couch near the door. She looked up at the clock. Her time was up…god she didn't want this.

She heard the sound of voices coming closer from down the hall. It was strange, but one sounded like he'd walked straight out of Camelot or a really bad version of Shakespeare. "Nay ye foul wretches ye shall not vanquish me! Unhand my person! Unhand me I say!"

Sam wondered if it was the pills making her hear what she was hearing, or if they really were trying to tackle down some knight of the realm. There were more signs of scuffling. She even heard some of the orderlies cussing and then the rather gratifying sound of Bubby letting out a cry of pain.

She couldn't help but giggle. Then she realized that she couldn't stop giggling. "Shit…" she muttered trying to dampen down the feeling. The pills were kicking in. Mood enhancers and some other components, this wasn't good.

Samantha heard the knight of the realm let out a sort of battle cry. "Hazzah! En guard you cretins!" There was more rattling and thudding.

Sam giggled again, starting to feel light headed and not caring who heard her. He was really giving them the what for. Lancelot…yep Lancelot was fighting the flying monkeys of Bay Ridge. Wait…that wasn't right. She laughed once more. A story was a story, why not let King Arthur have the Wizard of Oz instead of Merlin? Samantha nodded to herself, yes…that would be really interesting.

The sounds of the fighting got more chaotic and Sam glanced up, distracted from her pondering of a round table in the middle of Munchkinland when Larry looked back into the room, tensed up. He quickly looked down the hallway, then back into the room. "No one leave, you all stay in here. You got that." He glanced over Samantha's shoulder to Rory. "Old timer, make sure they stay put, you know how wild these newbie's can be."

Rory nodded. He'd been a newbie once upon a time.

With that, Larry took off down the hallway towards the receiving area moving amazingly fast for a man of his size. Samantha was no longer interested in escaping to the bathroom. There was no point now, especially since she wanted to figure out who would have more fun in Oz, Morgana or Guinevere? Morgana wouldn't like the competition of the Wicked Witch of the West…but Guinevere might enjoy her time in such a place. And of course Lancelot was already there by the sound of things. When had it gotten so warm?

Samantha heard another great crash coming from down the hallway, followed by the sound of running and crazed laughter, triumphant laughter. It was coming towards the rec room. Sam took a step towards the door, just to see what was going on. Coming round the corner she saw a man, legs pumping fast carrying an unused IV pole in his hand like a jousting lance. Her eyes widened, and she moved to stand back inside the safety of the rec rooms doorway.

The knight came to a sliding stop just outside the door, his socked feet almost but not quite slipping on the freshly waxed floor of the hallway. Sam was standing at the door, and her eyes met his. He wasn't overly tall or overly strong looking. But it was obvious looks could be deceiving as he'd escaped every one of the flying monkeys.

He had on faded blue hospital issue pajama bottoms and a faded grey t-shirt that read "Frequent Flyer of the Mile High Club" printed on it. He was wearing a red baseball cap over shaggy dark hair that bore a military patch proclaiming "Airborne." No wonder he could take down the flying monkeys so well.

Under the bill of the baseball cap striking bluish green eyes peered out nearly feverish in their intensity looking right at her. He was smiling like a madman which meant he was in the right place.

A mad knight, a slayer of sanity, a lord of lunacy…Samantha grinned back at him. "Lancelot." She said, her voice taking on an English accent because her suddenly swirling brain thought at that moment she should have one.

The man in question looked surprised for a split second, then delighted. The sounds of the many orderlies he'd just fought off and escaped now stampeding his way was ignored. He walked right into the rec room and swept his cap off like it was the hat of a musketeer and bowed on one knee, placing his weapon of choice on the floor. "My lady." He said gallantly, and then he stood placing the baseball cap squarely back on his head.

Sam felt the floor start to fold up beneath her. The drugs were really kicking in and the fact she'd not eaten before taking them was making everything even more surreal. And yet looking at her knight in faded cotton, she wasn't minding so much. "You're late…" She told him in a whisper, leaning close as if it was a secret.

"I am?" He asked her, his voice turning from old world English to a southern drawl.

"That's okay…" Samantha's vision grew blurry. "You're here now…" She looked towards the hallway where the orderlies were coming round the corner then back at him. "I think you made the flying monkeys mad."

Lancelot turned round and saw that she was in fact quite right. The flying monkeys looked more like gorillas and they did look mighty pissed. "I do believe they are." He told her. He turned back to her and smiled. "Did the tornado bring you to Oz Guinevere?" He asked her.

"Yes it did." Sam nodded; the storm that had been the last few months of her life was as destructive as a twister could be…so why lie?

The color drained from her face, so fast that even he noticed something was wrong. Black dots stared forming in front of her eyes, stealing away the knight and the rest of the rec room's occupants who had been watching their exchange fixedly.

"Lancelot…" She smiled at the thought of her own champion come to rescue her. It was a nice little fantasy and he'd be gone when she woke up from this glorious passing out she was about to do. Samantha really hated the drugs at that moment. And then she was out and falling.

Capt H.M. Murdock had never in his life had a woman faint into his arms. He'd had them run screaming away from him, had them screaming and running at him brandishing various weapons, but never had one fainted into his arms. He caught this woman before she hit he floor, kneeling a bit to handle the shift in weight so he wouldn't be pulled on top of her. That would be awkward.

"Huh…first time for everything I guess." He said aloud, brows raised in surprise as he looked down at her. Murdock wasn't complaining. If he had to have a gal faint on him, she was a pretty one. And they had at least one thing in common, they both were nuts. He'd seen Face do more with less. But come to think of it, he'd never seen a woman faint over the Faceman…heh. Murdock smiled cockily.

"There you are you freaking loon. You broke my toof." An angry voice said from behind him. "What the hell are you doing with that patient! Someone get her away from that psycho!"

"Flying monkeys." Murdock said, turning around and glaring at the orderlies led by a very pissed off Bubby as they surrounded him. They weren't quite as self assured as they were before. He'd surprised them. Which was something he was good at…they always underestimated crazy old Murdock. "Find your own princess, monkey." He told the now red faced orderly. He held her a little bit closer, not liking the way the man was glowering at her.

"He didn't do anything to her." An older man said to the monkeys. Murdock looked over at the man, already liking the old gentleman. Maybe he was the wizard?

"Rory don't get involved with this." Larry told him, moving cautiously around to the front of where Murdock was kneeling.

"He didn't do anything. She passed out and he caught her is all. She didn't look too well…I think those damn pills you gave her make her loopier than Dwayne over there." The old guy pointed to a man seated in a chair with a steady stream of drool coming down his chin.

Larry had no reason to not believe Rory. He could be a handful at times, but he was a good guy. And he knew how Rory had taken to watching out for Sam. The orderly turned back to the new arrival with the red ball cap and disconcerting stare. "Alright Captain…will you please let me check on her in case something is wrong?" He asked him slowly.

Murdock eyed the monkey warily. "Okay but no…funky monkey business…" He told him. The man knelt down slowly in front of Murdock.

After another second of hesitation, Murdock looked down at the sleeping woman in his arms, sighed heavily and then very gently placed her in front of the kneeling monkey. As soon as she was out of his reach the other monkeys pounced pulling him away and quickly putting him in restraints. He hated those…hated feeling confined. He struggled but he was worn out from the last battle with the monkeys, and he kept trying to see just what the other big gorilla was doing to his princess.

Larry only gave the crazed pilot a cursory glance while he struggled against the other orderlies. Samantha looked completely out of it. He checked her breathing, heart rate, pupils. "I think it's just a reaction to the medication, but we'll have Dr. Phelps check her out." He told Rory who was looking concerned. Larry turned to Bubby who was happily manhandling the new comer. "Bubby did you even check to see if she'd eaten dinner yet before you gave her that?"

"Stop struggling you freak." He yanked the man's arm till it nearly dislocated, then glared at Larry. "Hey I didn't have time to check them all for freaking food. We had an attempt in section 3 today, and we were all behind."

Larry glared back. "You dumb shit. That stuff they have her on needs to be balanced out by food or this happens!"

At this the struggling pilot stilled and craned his neck to glare up at Bubby. "You tried to poison her...you damn dirty ape."

Larry was surprised by the venom in the man's eyes. He looked like he'd bite Bubby's face off if he could. Larry shook off the whole Silence of the Lambs déjà vu he had. "Get him the hell into his room and sedate him, not necessarily in that order." He called over to a nurse who had just come in on shift. "Get Dr. Phelps down here please." The nurse nodded and headed off.

The orderlies managed to hold Murdock down long enough to plunge a syringe in his arm. The familiar burning followed by cold rushing through his veins told him he'd have maybe a full minute before he blacked out. His muscles were already going numb and the fight went out of him. "Monkeys…you…suck…" He slurred, falling to his knees still trying to resist the sedative. He hated those almost as much as he hated being tied up. He tired to focus on the sleeping princess with the thick framed glasses and pale face. Some champion he was, taken down by a gang of monkeys. He'd leave that out of the story when he told it to Face. That was the last thought Murdock had before he fell over onto his side, eyes rolling back into his head.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Same old Same Old….I only own the originals. Sharlto Copley owns my soul. **

**Authors Note: Wow, I had no idea you all would take to this so well. Thank you I'm glad you are enjoying it! **

**Chapter 2 here is all about Sam. We find out what happened to get her there. Not much HM in this chapter, but the 3****rd**** one we get TONS. **

**You all give great feedback. Thank you so much for the reviews. Please keep sending them.**

Chapter 2

When she woke up Samantha felt like an elephant had sat on her head and someone had shoved an entire bag of cotton in her mouth. Cracking open her eyes she looked around to find herself laying in her bed, sunlight steaming through the barred window of her small room.

"Uhhhh…" She didn't want to move. This was like a hangover of epic proportions. But the dry mouth was so bad she had to get at least a sip of water. Sam sat up slowly, holding her head and groaning. The meds always kicked her ass before she'd figured out her trick of yaking them up. But this was worse than any of those. She didn't even remember being brought into her room.

She managed to swing her legs over the side of the bed and found her glasses on the bedside table. What was the last thing she did remember? "Lancelot." The name of King Arthur's knight came out raspy as it rolled off her tongue. That's right…she'd imagined a knight running down the hall and coming to rescue her. Samantha shook her head then regretted doing the motion.

There was little wonder she'd imagine somebody coming to her rescue. Hadn't he been fighting…monkeys? Sam stood up slowly and hobbled over to the plastic pitcher of water and cup on her desk. She drank down an entire cupful while she pondered her delusion, trying to remember what she'd done. She'd been laughing first of all, something that she'd not done in weeks, if not months if she were truthful. Lancelot had been cute if a bit crazy looking. But that sort of went with the décor.

Sam poured herself another cup of water, sipping it this time. Her stomach didn't feel up to snuff yet. She sat back on the bed and felt a heaviness settle over her, adding to the weight she already felt on her shoulders. There was no hero here to save her; she was going to have to save herself.

The thought of the mad knight not being real made her feel even worse though. She sighed and took another sip of water. It wasn't so much the feeling of someone else taking her away from all of her problems…but having an ally to fight alongside her, to help her. Rory was the only friend she had, period…it would have been nice to have another. She'd been alone most of her life other than her father, and now…now she didn't even know if he was still alive.

Sam swallowed the rest of her water and stood up again. She needed a shower, maybe something a little more substantial than water. What time was it? She glanced at the clock bolted to the wall. It read 9:45. She'd been out for over twelve hours. "Christ…" she muttered to herself. The vague notion that she'd passed out into Lancelot's arms crossed her mind. Much more likely she'd fell asleep on the couch and they'd brought her in here.

"Hero's are just a fairy tale Samantha, get over yourself." She pulled out a fresh set of clothes from the drawers next to her bed. Faded Atari logo sleep pants, an equally faded Masters of the Universe t-shirt, fresh underwear and slipper socks, yep she was styling. Her small bag of approved toiletries went with her. She felt like a zombie as she shambled down the hall out of her room. She checked in with a nurse and was escorted into the shower/bathroom.

Twenty minutes later, her hair still slightly damp, Sam went into the dining room and managed to get the remains of breakfast. Fake eggs with a little bit of cheese and a huge dose of hot sauce on top. It helped cover the lack of taste, even though it numbed her tongue. A lukewarm can of apple juice completed breakfast. She ate in silence, most of the other patients wandering the yard or in the rec room staring at the TV or whatever it was they saw in the air that she couldn't.

She tossed away her trash and headed into the rec room. Rory was playing ping pong against one of the younger patients, a boy named Lyle. Lyle was losing, but it was obvious he was concentrating very hard. Rory looked up when she came in and smiled. "Hey princess." He said with a wink.

She looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Hi?"

"Alright Lyle…time to take a break." Rory caught the ping pong ball deftly in one hand, garnering a pout from his freckle faced opponent. Lyle wandered off and started having a conversation with his paddle about how it needed to start training more.

Rory walked over to where she stood and gave her a perusing look. "How are you doing today kiddo? You had me a bit scared."

Samantha shrugged. "Alright I guess. I hate those pills. I mean, not just the whole sleeping forever thing, but I had the weirdest dream. Who got me off the couch by the way?"

Rory gave her a funny look. "Couch? You weren't on the couch girlie."

"What are you talking about? I zonked out on the couch…then I had some dream about flying monkeys attacking Camelot." Sam's voice was slightly high.

Rory shook his head. "You weren't dreaming sweet pea. You were having a good old time having a good old delusion while our newest resident beat down Bubby and most of the evening shift." He grinned again. "Then he swept you off your feet courtly as I've ever seen."

Sam's mouth opened and closed a few times. She tried to wrap her head around what Rory was saying. "You mean that all really happened?"

The vet laughed softly, patting her on the shoulder. "A little half and half. From what I could tell the two of you thought the orderlies were Flying Monkeys. I don't think that was true, but I haven't checked in any of their scrub pants for tails lately." Rory let out a long breath glancing out towards the hall. "Anyway, he showed up in here after running away from the receiving desk. You two were right out of a damn PBS special. All bowing and M'lady, then you sort of passed out."

Sam's eyes were wide behind her glasses. "Passed out?" She asked in a tiny voice. "You mean I fainted?"

Rory nodded. "Yep, right into his arms. That scared em right good cause he could have hurt you. But I don't think the thought crossed his mind." Rory winked at her. "I think he liked you."

She looked horrified. "I don't faint..."

"Well, I can't blame you kiddo, those horse tranqs they gave you are harsh." Rory reached into his back pocket and pulled out a red baseball cap. "This is his. He's a ranger comes to find out; a pilot and a damn good one according to the rumor mill. It fell into the floor when they were dragging him into "the cell"."

Sam shuddered for a moment. The cell was where they put the real off the chain patients that came in. It was awful. Stark white padded walls and a sort of flat holding chair they strapped you into, and a door. That was it. She'd not had to visit the cell, but she'd seen it and those poor bastards that were being taken into it. You could hear the screams sometimes even through the walls.

Rory studied the cap. "I figured I'd hold onto it for him. One of them would have probably just thrown it away or stole it. Nice hat."

Sam slumped a bit. "How long is he in there for?"

"I think he'll be getting out today sometime. They tossed him in there to settle him down, teach him a lesson. Not like I think it'll work. Boys got some spunk." He laughed then looked thoughtful. "You should hold onto it for him, give it to him when he gets out. Do him good to see his princess."

"Why are you calling me a princess Rory?" Sam asked, lips twisting to the side.

"Cause that's what he called you. You called him Lancelot so naturally you have to be a princess right?" He gave her a wink.

"I'm not a princess. And…and…" Sam stuttered, her brain trying to figure out if this was a good thing or a bad thing. Just a little while ago she'd been sad that her knight hadn't been real. Now he was apparently and they'd shared a moment that she couldn't even remember clearly. Surreal didn't begin to cover it.

Rory patted her shoulder again. "Don't fret Sammy. It'll be okay. Here…take this." He placed the faded red cap into her slightly trembling hand. "Keep it safe for the kid. He did stop you from taking a header into the floor."

Samantha looked down at the worn cap. It was soft from use and washings, but still in good shape. She looked up doubtfully at Rory. She trusted his judgment on most things. But she was wary on this one. "His name isn't really Lancelot is it?" She asked wryly.

Rory shook his head. "Nope, it's Murdock. H.M. Murdock. He's a Captain."

"H. M. Murdock?" Sam's brow furrowed. "Different….what's the H M stand for?"

"Howling Mad, which I can respect." Rory grinned widely.

Sam couldn't help but laugh and shake her head. "No wonder you're partial to liking him."

"We vets have to stick together." He replied, and for a moment sadness flickered across his eyes.

Samantha saw it and wished there was something she could do to help him, but there was nothing in her power that could pry the memories he had away. It just so happened that a nurse called Rory's name at that moment. He had a session with Dr. James. Sam hoped it didn't involve the shock therapy he'd told her about before.

"Keep a hold of that for him. I'll see you later." Rory told her and then headed off to follow the nurse.

Sam clutched the cap in her hands and with a heavy heart went towards the door that led outside to the yard. You had to be approved to be allowed out there and she was thankfully. She placed the cap in the pocket of her hoodie and after getting the nod of okay from Tom the orderly she walked out into the sunny spring day.

Sam hadn't given much thought to how wonderful it was just to get to go outside whenever you wanted, not until she came to Bay Ridge and had her freedom taken from her. Now Sam was just thankful she had the chance to go out and breathe air that didn't smell of medicine and disinfectant.

There were benches spread out amongst the few trees in the yard. A large fence surrounded the property. You had no chance of getting over that fence on your own. Sam had seen one guy try and he'd broken a leg in the attempt.

She settled on a bench under the shade of a drooping branch. It was sometimes more depressing out here than inside. Watching the lost looks on some of the patient's faces as they wandered about in the bright, shiny day was even harder to deal with than within the drab walls of the hospital. Then there were the overly happy ones who were nearly like children, chasing a random dragonfly or a leaf that had blown off a tree. Those she nearly envied.

Samantha took a deep breath and stretched her legs out in front of her, her mind running through all the things that had led here. Her brother's greed was one of the biggest factors. But she was to blame too.

Trying to find her way in the world, something she was good at, she'd wasted some years. Coming from the Foster family, she had the money to do what she wanted. She wasn't spoiled. She'd been alive when her family had had nothing, could remember those times easier than Stewart. It was due to her father's determination to make a good life for them and his intelligence as a savvy investor in a business he knew would work that had got them where they were.

Foster Delivery had grown. "Foster is Faster" was a catch phrase that people knew. DHL, FedEx, UPS, they were the competition but Foster Delivery was starting to catch up.

Flitting from class to class, new project to project, Sam was a jack of all trades and a master of none. She never fit with anything it seemed, and it had taken its toll on her mother who had finally had enough and sent her off to boarding school to try and get her on what she considered the right path. That hadn't gone well either…except Sam did discover while there she had a penchant for acting.

She lost herself in characters for a time. It had come from far too much TV growing up she guessed. But she was actually good at it and made one or two friends of the drama geeks. Julia Foster hadn't been thrilled with the news that her daughter was acting. She wanted her doing something that had a practical use in the real world. So after a screaming match it was decided that the ambling daughter would not focus on computers. At least it would be something that could go towards the family business.

Samantha had taken computer classes before, one of the many things she'd tried her hand at. She'd been good at it, had a knack. But ADD or whatever it was that caused her to keep searching kept her from sticking with it.

When college came along she went into it with a computer science degree in mind. If she snuck in a minor in theater at some point...well mom would just have to understand. The funny thing was, her father never cared about the random acts of schizophrenic soul searching his daughter did, not like her mother. He simply wanted her to be happy.

The only thing she'd done that disappointed him was to not inherit his love of flying. She'd tried of course…she wanted her dad to be proud. He'd take her up with him in the small private plane he'd adored and Samantha would be okay for the first few minutes…and then stark raving terror would hit her. Make her freeze, then shake, then she'd want to cry. Over the years the reaction would get slightly better…but Sam just hadn't been able to overcome it. Samuel Foster never forced her onto a plane, but Samantha knew it hurt her dad that she couldn't share the love of soaring into the sky with him.

A year before she was to graduate college Samantha had gotten the phone call that was to change her life. Sam Foster sounded tired, more tired than she'd ever heard him sound. He'd asked her to come home for a few days. Her father broke the news over dinner that he had cancer.

Sam had been heart broken and she immediately took herself out of school to come home and be with her father and do what she could for the company and to help shoulder the load. Her brother Stewart had been working at the company while at school, then had gone on to start college as well. Her mother was very proud of her son, who had a good head on his shoulders and a clear vision of his life. He was the future of the company, of the family. Sam knew where she rated.

Over the next six years her dad had been battling the illness. Remission, then return, remission and return…Sam stayed by his side when she wasn't trying to help her Uncle Doug with the company business or trying to keep her mother under control. While this was all happening, Stewart was earning his degree and taking the reins…and she would find out later, using the Foster Delivery fleet to smuggle drugs and weapons for the mob.

When Stewart was given the mantle of President of Foster Delivery when he graduated, Samantha figured that was when he truly fell from grace. It hadn't been a quick fall, but it was at that moment when he had no one to truly watch him that he went in as deep as he could go.

It had been going on for a while, she could tell from the files she'd found while helping Doug to locate data on the network he'd thought had been lost during a server problem. They'd been hidden but not well. The shipments, the payments, e-mails…why Stewart had been so stupid to keep it all there she had no idea. But it was obvious he'd been doing these "favors" for a while. And now, it had ramped up in frequency…and in financing.

She couldn't tell her father. Sam Foster had taken yet another turn for the worse, and chemotherapy had him so weak he couldn't even leave his bed. It would be the final nail in a coffin that was already near closing. Her mother was no help. Stewart could do no wrong in her eyes.

Samantha confronted him on her own. And that had been a mistake…The argument was brutal and she'd seen the real Stewart come out. He'd dared her to say something. And when he realized she was trapped between a rock and a hard place…he'd devised a way to get her out of the picture. Some semblance of humanity was left in him because he hadn't killed her. No, he'd had her committed.

The fight had been a bad one. She'd slapped him at one point, stupidly enough. So he had the balls to call the cops on her, filing assault charges. Samantha realized at that point that the mob owned the cops in town too. That's why he'd been so fearless. And apparently Stewart had called in a favor with the judge because here she was…deemed a manic and delusional schizophrenic.

Samantha pulled the hat out of her pocket again. Airborne…huh, her dad would have liked this guy. The irony wasn't lost on her. She flipped the cap around and put it on, pulling it over her eyes to block out the sun. The fabric held the scent of curry and engine oil mixed with smoke. It wasn't as disgusting as it should have been, Sam thought smiling slightly.

She sat outside for another half hour, just listening to the birds and enjoying the cool breeze that had started. Around noon Tom let them know that lunch had started to be served. Sam pushed the hat up so she could see and headed back inside, realizing she hadn't eaten anything but a tiny serving of eggs since yesterday. Her stomach was growling.

The line was long, and she looked around for Rory but found no sign of him. Lyle shook his head no when she asked him if he'd seen him around. After a worried glance towards the hall that led to the "treatment rooms" Samantha took her place in the line for food.

A turkey sandwich, a container of apple sauce, and some carrots were the feast for the day. She snagged a bottle of Hawaiian Punch and found a seat at an empty table. She'd been eating silently, trying to figure out if it really was turkey when she heard a familiar voice say "You stole my hat."


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own them…**

**Authors Note: Double whammy hit today since I'll be gone for most of this week. Enjoy. REVIEW! I need my crack !**

**Also yes, there is a little teeny nod to District 9, because I realized...yes it had to be done.**

Chapter 3

Sam looked up and to her right to see Lancelot…no his name was Murdock… standing there holding an identical tray to hers with a strange look on his face as he peered down at her.

"Oh! It's…you." She put down her sandwich and after wiping her hands on a napkin took off the hat. "I…I didn't steal it…I…was holding on to it for you." She offered it to him with a tentative smile.

Murdock placed his tray down on the table and took his beloved lucky cap from the girl. He'd been more than a little concerned the monkeys had done something with it. Then when he'd seen it on the other side of the dining room he'd nearly whooped with glee. That was until he realized someone was actually wearing it…besides him.

"My friend snatched it before they could throw it away. You were…sort of unconscious." Sam explained watching him examine it for signs of abuse.

"Damn monkeys. You can't trust them." He said then put it on sighing happily. He glanced at her again, as if truly noticing her for the first time. He suddenly grinned crazily. "Hey Princess…you look different…" He sat down quickly across from her and she noticed he had a bottle of the hot sauce she'd used earlier on her eggs. He took off the top slice of bread from his sandwich and started dousing the turkey with it.

"I look different?" She asked then shook her head. "And I'm not a princess." She corrected him.

He stopped shaking the bottle and looked at her. "Yeah, that's what's different. You were but now…you're not. We need to fix that."

Sam didn't know how to take that comment, so she ignored it. Instead she asked if she could use the hot sauce.

He finished dousing his sandwich and slid the bottle over to her. "Its not secret sauce, but it'll do for now." He said, then took a large bite of his food.

Sam followed his example. She chewed a bite of her sandwich and swallowed. "That's at least…some taste."

"Bland is bland is bland." The pilot muttered in response. "They should let me take a crack at the lunch menu." He too a drink of his fruit punch, looking thoughtful. "I mean that fire wasn't my fault. It could have happened to anybody."

Sam didn't want to know what he was talking about. She could guess it had something to do with the last time he'd tried to take a crack at a lunch menu. She took another bite of her sandwich. He looked okay for someone who'd spent the night in "the cell". He wasn't screaming, no sign of tears or trying to chew his own hands off.

"I wanted to…thank you." She managed to say without stuttering. His eyes were unsettling when they looked at her, so she stared at the table top. It wasn't that they were horrible or scary…Sam just thought they saw too much.

"For what?" He asked, eating a carrot.

"Catching me." She told him. "I hear I passed out last night and you caught me."

"Oh." Murdock nodded. "Well I'd be remiss in my duties if I'd allowed you crack your skull on the linoleum." He flipped another carrot deftly into the air and caught it in his mouth chewing noisily.

Samantha was once again trying to figure out what he meant. "Duties?"

He was staring at her again, his attention fixed right on her. It was like a switch had been flipped. Murdock's large green eyes were unblinking, lean face serious. "I'm your knight m'lady. I've been charged with your protection as a defender of the realm. I'm duty bound to keep you safe. Bound heart and soul and title to do so." His voice had changed again and Samantha realized as the drugged clouded memory hit her, this was the accent she'd heard the night before. That wasn't the only thing familiar about the words.

"That's from episode two of Days and Knights." She grinned at him unable to stop it. "I used to never miss that show." It had been on when she was twelve years old, an import from the UK they'd show on the local cable station. She'd never missed it.

Murdock looked surprised then grinned back. "Not only a princess but a lady with taste. I think I got lucky."

"You should talk to my mom about that. She hated that show. She thought it was rotting my brain." Sam took another bite of her sandwich.

"What do you expect from evil gorgons?" Murdock picked up another carrot and balanced it on the end of his finger.

Sam nearly choked on her bread, laughing. "I think you're on the right track, but she hasn't turned anyone to stone yet. At least not that I know of."

"Never turn your back on a gorgon…unless you have a really shiny shield to watch them through." He said sagely, then flicked the carrot into his mouth with a skill that was quite amazing.

"If we've learned anything from Harry Hamlin it's that." Samantha agreed, smiling. She realized suddenly that he'd done two things in the short span of time they'd been sitting there that were surprising, aside from the whole carrot projectile eating. He'd gotten her to talk about her mother a bit, and he'd made her laugh…real true laughter.

They were done with their lunch a few minutes later. "Well, Mr. Murdock…thank you again. I'm sure I'll see you around." She told him, starting to stand up. She turned before she could see the appraising glance the pilot gave her. He was standing up and grabbing her tray from her hand before she could say a word.

"Allow me." He told her dumping both of them and tossing them loudly on top of one another. He turned and bowed gesturing through the doorway leading into the main hall. "Ladies first."

Sam shook her head and walked into the hallway. He followed her closely. "So what do you all do for fun around here? I mean, besides following the yellow brick road?" He asked, his tattered red bathrobe swishing around his legs. He reached into his pocket and pulled out two Hershey Kisses, dangling one in front of her.

Sam's eyes widened. Where the hell had he gotten chocolate? "How did you?"

He grinned. "Trade secret. You want?" He shook it by its little paper flag.

Samantha took the proffered goodie and had it unwrapped and devoured in less than ten seconds. "Guh…" she moaned. "I haven't had chocolate in over a month."

"That's a sin against nature." He was eating his own at the moment. Then he grinned widely. "I just kissed a princess."

"I'm not a princess." She told him for what felt like the hundredth time.

"You keep saying that…"

He'd switched back to his Southern accent a while ago. Samantha figured that was actually his voice…but she had a feeling you couldn't be sure about Murdock. Either way she liked it.

They were standing at the entrance to the rec room. Sam gestured around. "This is the party room. Your fun is to be had in here." She said wryly.

Murdock looked about with the eye of a man who'd seen many such rooms. "Basic layout." He said, lips thinning in disappointment. "The last place at least had a Nintendo..."

"Modern science indeed." She quipped.

"Better than ping pong." He said.

"True…" She sighed then, her face taking on a look of worry. She still didn't know what was going on with Rory. He wasn't in here where he typically stayed. He wasn't allowed as far as she knew in the yard. He'd tried to escape once he'd told her, and they didn't look too kindly on that.

"What's wrong?" Murdock asked her, and she turned to find him studying her again, his thin lips slightly frowning. It was a strange expression to see on his face she guessed. Sam hadn't realized she'd been staring down the hall.

"My friend, the one who rescued your hat…I don't know what's going on with him right now." She took a deep breath and wrapped her arms around herself. "He'd said they were going to start using shock therapy on him…"

Murdock had had his own experiences with ye old electricity. It hadn't done much for him other than make his teeth tingle. But he knew it worked differently for everyone. He'd actually gotten to the point of enjoying it. He didn't know what to say to alleviate her worries though. You never knew just who was at the dial shooting you full of juice. He'd seen some guys come out looking like last weeks broccoli after a session. Those three extra layers of skull he had did him some good he supposed.

He watched as her eyes were drawn back down to the hall and the rooms he guessed she'd last seen her friend headed. He had a feeling it was the Wizard she was worried about. He'd remembered the old man and his defense of him the night before. He hadn't seen him around (of course he could be hiding behind a curtain.) It made sense that the monkeys would have attacked him. Evil monkeys never liked good wizards.

Murdock reached into his pocket and pulled out another piece of foil wrapped chocolate. He took her hand and flipped up her palm, dropping it into it. He held her wrist for a few extra seconds as her eyes looked up at him in surprise. She had pretty eyes behind her glasses. Not quite grey, not quite blue, not even green, just a swirly mess that worked. Her glasses made them even bigger due to the strength of the prescription. His thumb brushed over her pulse as he let go. "They help. But just don't forget to unwrap them…man that smarts." He told her.

Sam gave him a small smile. "Thanks sweetie man."

Murdock gave her a funny look, then smiled back at her.

She unwrapped the candy and mimicking his routine at the lunch table flipped it into the air and caught it in her mouth.

"Hey, you're pretty good." The pilot was impressed; she'd gotten a lot of air on that toss.

"Yeah until I mess up and choke to death." Sam grinned at his enthusiasm.

The sound of doors opening down the hallway grabbed Samantha's attention away from Murdock's response of "Heimlich, its what's for dinner." She turned to see a group of three orderlies wheeling someone on a slanted gurney down the floor. Sam gasped when she realized who it was beneath the straps.

"Rory…" She gasped out, nearly choking on his name. She took off down the hallway without thinking. All she could see was the evidence of their form of therapy. He looked catatonic, there was frothy drool leaking from the side of his mouth. As she got closer she could even see wounds on his head that looked like burn marks.

The orderlies hadn't noticed her coming towards them, and it was just as well. They'd have stopped her and she'd have fought them. But someone grabbed hold of her arm before she could get herself in trouble. "Whoa…whoa missy…" Murdock said gently pulling her back in the recess of a storage room.

"Let me go! They've they've…" She struggled but he kept a firm arm around her middle.

Murdock glanced over and saw that he'd been right. The Wizard had fallen to the monkeys. "I know…" He said softly. He didn't release her even though she was a fighter. The minute he did he knew she'd take off down the hallway and try to punch every one of the monkeys…and then they'd start fighting back as monkeys were want to do. Then he'd have to beat them all down again…and it would just end badly.

"We can't do anything now." He told her, voice low. Murdock felt her start to wear down. He saw the tears streaming down her cheeks, streaking her glasses. He glanced back down the hall at the retreating forms of the monkeys in blue and their prisoner. It wasn't the usual amused harmless look that many attributed to the crazy pilot.

Samantha felt her strength give out. Her one constant in this pit had been ripped from her. Sure Rory was still alive…if you could call that living. But was he gone…had they damaged him to the point he was going to be like that forever? It was too much for her. She'd been dealing with the cluster fuck her life had become pretty well. But Rory had been a sort of stand in dad for her. And this was too much like losing her father, it hit too close.

The pilot still had his arm around her, holding her back from doing something she knew was both pointless and stupid. Her knight…her protector was actually protecting her from herself. Samantha cracked. She felt the sobs coming hard and fast, nearly making it impossible to breathe. Her legs gave out and if Murdock hadn't been holding on to her she would have buckled to the floor again, much like the night before.

It all slammed into her like a barrage of fists and she grabbed hold of the ratty robe he was wearing for something to simply hold on to. She buried her face in the lapel that same curry and motor oil scent contained in the fabric just like the hat. Sam cried, screaming silently into the tattered dressing gown of a lunatic.

"No one…I can't do this….I'm alone….nothing left…he…did…this…why why why…" She kept saying, voice choked and frantic between sobs.

Murdock had gone very still as soon as she had turned around and shoved her face into his chest while crying like she her life depended on it. Once again his lack of experience with the opposite sex made him feel at a loss as to what to do. But he was a knight…and he was going to do his duty for his princess who at that moment was quite frankly losing her marbles. One of them had to be at least a little sane, didn't they? Well, sanity was overrated he'd always thought…but he didn't like seeing women crying. Southern gentlemen as well as knights of the realm just didn't let that happen. He was both darn it.

But he was bothered by what he heard her saying. She wasn't alone, he was there with her. And who had done what to her? He needed to figure this new mystery out. But first thing was first. Very slowly he pulled her into a hug, resting his chin against her hair. "You're not alone princess. I promise your not." He said gently. If BA or Face could see him now they'd probably laugh. What did he know about calming anybody down?

"I can't…do this…I can't…" Sam couldn't stop it. She wanted to stop herself from just going to pieces but her brain wasn't cooperating. She just wanted to not feel anymore. Maybe if she asked for shock therapy they'd give it to her, being a vegetable would be preferable.

She must have said this out loud because Murdock shook her slightly. "No it's not. Trust me on this."

Sam looked up at him through a blur of smudged and tear streaked lenses, still grasping his robe. "I...I'm so tired…" Her voice was tiny.

He reached down and plucked her glasses off her nose, slipping them in his pocket. "Then you're going to take a nap." He told her as if it was obvious. He slid down the wall pulling her with him, which was pretty easy since she wasn't quite all there, and sat down on the floor. Murdock pulled her onto his lap feeling like a mall Santa. "Naps help. Just like chocolate. This is basic kindergarten stuff…you should remember this."

She realized vaguely she was sitting on not only a strange mans lap but the lap of an actual lunatic…and Samantha also realized she didn't care. She felt strangely safe with him. She became a bit more lucid, the freak out abating somewhat. "They gave you that gross fluoride in those little paper cups…"

"I try not to remember the gross things like puking on Sarah Walters during cookies and milk time…" Murdock said, then realized he was in fact remembering something gross. "Oh, I guess I do remember the gross stuff. Forget what I just said... Naps help. So close your eyes. I'll watch out for evil monkeys."

She sniffed and closed her eyes as instructed, resting her head against his chest. "I like Indian food…" she murmured sleepily. Out of all the things she'd gone through over the last few months of her life, this might have been the most surreal.

He looked down and grinned. She'd not witnessed the mastery of Chef Murdock tamer of the wild BA and flaming curry of doom. Oh she would though. As soon as they got out of here he'd make her the best damn meal she'd ever tasted. He pulled her a little closer, and noticed she was already asleep. The wonder of a hardcore breakdown…it took a lot out of you. He'd had a few doozies in his time.

Murdock leaned his head back and stared out of the small barred window of the supply room at the blue sky and clouds that passed by. These monkeys never learned...you never could keep all of Howling Mad Murdock locked up. His head was always in the clouds. His princess just needed to learn that trick too.


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER: He's not Banner and I think that sucks. That's all I have to disclaim.**

**Authors Note: I wanted to at least do a little bit of something since it's been a week. So here's a short (for me at least) chapter. This gives a bit of insight into where Sam's head is at (a place it shouldn't be) and Murdock's attitude (which is just what she needs.) **

**Enjoy and I promise more soon. ****Reviews are love.**

Chapter 4

Samantha woke up to the sensation of her shoulder being shaken and a voice saying "You'd better not be dead…"

She cracked her eyes which felt sticky and sore from crying and looked up into the face of Murdock who looked relieved when he saw that she was in fact still alive. "Yeah, that would have been awkward." He said letting out a sigh.

She realized she was still sitting on his lap and she'd been there probably a good while. Sam also realized she'd drooled on his robe. "Oh god I drooled on you." She said aloud her voice rough and still drowsy.

Murdock looked down and saw she was right. "Oh…uhm…eww." He seemed fairly calm about it.

She tried to dab at the spot with her shirt sleeve. "I'm sorry…"

"Don't worry, its not the first time it's had drool on it. Most likely not the last." He glanced out towards the hallway. It was getting near dinner time. He was surprised the monkeys hadn't found them yet. She'd been asleep for a few hours and he'd actually dozed off at one point too. Unfortunately his legs were getting numb, which had been the reason he'd decided to wake her up. He needed his legs. He didn't even have to ask her to move, she slipped off his lap and onto the floor next to him, rubbing her face with her hands. He bent his knees up and was rewarded with a pins and needles sensation.

"It wasn't a dream…they really did it to him didn't they?" She mumbled into her palms.

Murdock glanced over at her, his lips going thin. "Give him a night or two…before you really start worrying."

She looked up at him with doubting eyes while he massaged the feeling back into his right leg. "Trust me." He told her, giving her a smile. It wouldn't do for her to storm the castle to try and save the wizard. Not until he was able to walk at least and not until he knew what the lay out was. He sure as heck wasn't letting her go into battle alone.

Sam sucked in a breath and sighed it out slowly. "I do…" she said, surprising herself and the pilot.

"You do…what?" He asked, going to work on his other leg.

"I trust you…which really is nuts." She gave a sort of laugh.

"Uhm…thanks, I think…" He replied. "Little late now to doubt my trustworthiness though. I mean…you did just sleep with me…in the truest sense of the words of course. I mean….I'm noble." He grinned widely while Sam looked slightly freaked.

She pondered it for a full thirty seconds. If he was going to try anything he had plenty of opportunity while she was sitting on his lap unconscious. She didn't feel violated and he had gotten her calmed down and stopped her from doing something stupid. Her shoulders slumped and she turned and looked back at the ground. "Thank you Lancelot." She said softly, feeling tears trying to come back to her eyes.

Murdock saw the change in her, his smile turning into a frown of concern. "Guinevere…you're down in the dumps again."

She laughed at the phrase. "Yeah, I guess I am…" Sam ran her fingers through her hair.

"It's not very quiet in here right now…" She gestured to her head, where far too many thoughts fought for her attention.

Murdock nodded. He knew how that was. He stood slowly, hopping up and down on each foot to test for any remaining rubbery feelings in his knees. Then he offered a hand to her. "Come on, I'll buy you dinner." He gave her another toothy grin, his green eyes catching the hallway light and twinkling manically.

Sam stared at his outstretched fingers for a few moments and then placed hers into them. He gripped her hand gingerly and helped her to stand. He turned to go but she kept hold of him. Murdock turned and gave her a funny look. "I'll need that back at some point." He told her gesturing at his arm.

"I don't have many friends." She told him, hating how small her voice sounded in the nearly empty room. "Especially in here…so…thank you." Sam couldn't quite meet his eyes at the confession. She felt worthless most of the time, helpless. Even worse she was starting to feel like maybe she deserved being in there.

Murdock was crazy, but he wasn't stupid…something he had to tell people every once in a while, or remind them of. He'd seen people who'd been betrayed before, who'd been gutted by something that had happened to them. He knew that feeling personally; the minute they'd removed his rank in front of the tribunal, when he and the team had realized what Morrison had done to them all. He'd known that feeling far better and more often than anyone should have to.

And looking into her haunted eyes he saw that being reflected back at him. His princess had been hurt badly by something, something far more dangerous than flying monkeys. Murdock could handle those fur balls. But this he needed more intel on before he could attack it with a flaming sword or a really big gun. Until he had that part figured out, he'd do his duty as best he could.

He gave her hand a squeeze and smiled. "Just doing my duty m'lady." He spoke again in his rather convincing English accent. "Tis my honor and privilege and I will take no refusal to my request to dine in the castles hall this fine evening."

Samantha couldn't resist it. He was too damn good at acting the part. She couldn't stop the grin spreading on her face. She pulled her hand from his and curtsied. "T'will be my honor to accompany you sir." Sam replied in an equally flawless reproduction of a Brit.

Oh yeah, a big gun was on the horizon for whoever had hurt this gal. Murdock offered her his arm which she slipped hers through. The two of them started walking down the hallway to the cafeteria like they owned the place. Which in Murdock's mind they sort of did.

"So what sort of feast has been prepared do you suspect?" He asked her, noticing the glances from some of the other residence and returning them with a sort of Queen Elizabeth wave of his hand.

"I do believe its ye old sloppy joe." Sam replied stifling a laugh.

"Charming." Murdock said with little enthusiasm. He'd no doubt have to use an entire bottle of hot sauce just to cover up the actual taste of whatever they'd used to make it with. He pined in his heart for a bottle of anti-freeze.

"I layer it with tater tots. I find it helps." She patted his hand comfortingly.

The pilot looked thoughtful. "You are not only graceful but intelligent as well m'lady. I like the way you think."

They entered the cafeteria to find the line had already formed for the night's dinner. Divide and conquer sounded like a good plan. "You get in line and I'll snag the hot sauce." She told him, and then quickly hurried to the condiment table where only one lone bottle was left. She snagged it just before one of the larger female patients went to wrap a meaty paw around it.

"Tha's my girl." Murdock said to himself while sliding into place in the long line of hungry and psychotic residence.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I'm on a tank! **

**Authors Note: Woooot! Thanks to all the fans of the story. I take my time with chapters and I'm wordy. I hope you don't mind. Please keep the reviews coming and once again thanks for all the kind words and Murdock love. **

**Chapter 5**

Murdock and Sam sat across from each other eating the greasy feast that was dinner at Bay Ridge. She'd been right about the tater tots idea he was happy to discover. Even though he still had to coat the mystery meat with enough hot sauce that the bun turned bright red, it still needed that little something to get it tolerable.

She'd been quiet for the most part, staring down at her tray or the floor, or even at the other patients. At one point a scuffle did break out between two of the other inmates over the last milk container. But that got quickly stopped by the monkeys waiting in the wings.

Murdock didn't much care for the kind of quiet that had settled over his princess. It felt wrong. He figured her for the kind that laughed and talked a lot. Sort of like him. Of course that was the sort of thing that drove BA crazier than he was. He'd seen a glimpse or two of it, when they were talking about Knights and Days, when he'd seen her standing there after his first tangle with the monkeys. Her sad eyes would change to something more sparkly behind her glasses. Speaking of…

"Oh, here you go. I cleaned them for you…they were sort of streaky." He pushed her glasses towards her across the table top.

Sam had sort of preferred the not being able to see everything sort of vision being without them had afforded her. But she would start getting a headache soon if she didn't wear them. She picked them up and slid them on. "Thank you." She told him.

Murdock peered at her closely, studying her face again. "You look smarter than the average bear."

She laughed. "Thanks Booboo."

The pilot grinned, taking a long drink of his milk. He'd got her to smile again. That was good. Smiling helped. Now he just needed to figure out that whole mystery of who had hurt her; set her up and got her put in here. Murdock knew a lot about a lot of things, but two things in particular he knew well: crazy and planes. And she wasn't crazy…well not the type that belonged locked up. He put his milk back down, warily watching for the milk raiders who'd gotten into the tussle earlier. "Quiz time." He said and she glanced at him in surprise with those swirly colored eyes.

"Are we having a test?" She asked taking a bite of her own red stained mess of a sandwich.

"Fred or Shaggy?" He raised an eyebrow, waiting for her response.

Samantha's brow furrowed. "In what context?" she asked him back. Dinner was taking a surreal turn, which seemed par for the course with him.

"Well duh…who was the best guy in the Mystery Machine?" He replied exasperated.

"Scrappy." She grinned as he looked absolutely horrified. Before he could toss his tray over her head she held her hands up. "I'm kidding…jeesh…"

"We don't speak of Scrappy." He told her in all seriousness.

"I see that." Sam shook her head and took a drink of her milk. "I've never been one for ascots. So definitely Shaggy. Plus you know…Casey Kasem voice."

Murdock grinned and then smoothly started reciting a request and dedication for his dog Billy in a perfect mimic of the radio host. Samantha sat with her mouth hanging open as he relayed why "Who Let the Dog's Out" was so special and heartfelt.

"You sure you're a pilot?" She asked him when he was done, amazed at the not so hidden talent he had.

He looked affronted. Murdock pulled down the sleeve of his robe and pushed up the sleeve of his t-shirt (this one with a print of King Ding Dong and a package of Hostess cakes emblazoned on the front of it.) There on his surprisingly well formed bicep was a good sized darkly inked tattoo. "I'm a Ranger baby." He answered her, his voice his own again and deadly serious.

Samantha realized she'd tread on sacred ground. "I didn't mean to say you weren't." She apologized or tried to. "I meant, you're just really good at pretending to be other people. It's impressive." Great Sam, tick off the only person you've got left here.

Murdock gave her another doubtful glance and then smiled and pulled the sleeve back up of his robe. "I've had a lot of practice." He said, his green eyes twinkling again. "Plus there's a lot of people walking around in here." He pointed to his temple. "Or so I've been told."

She smiled back at him, relieved he wasn't mad at her. "Okay, so it's only fair…Daphne or Velma?" She asked raising her own eyebrow in inquiry.

Murdock didn't even hesitate, this one was easy. "Velma. I like smart girls." He gave her another crooked grin and his eyes crinkled up at the corners as he smiled at her.

Sam suddenly felt a little bit flushed. She quickly drank down the rest of her milk to cover it up.

Murdock sensed what he considered a disturbance in the force. He looked towards the entrance to the dining hall and saw the monkey from last night, the one whose jaw he'd nailed with a right hook standing there.

Sam noticed his gaze narrowing to something behind her. "Do I want to turn around?" She asked him.

"No…no I don't think you want to. Don't worry; it's not an alien or anything." Murdock figured the monkey wouldn't play nice again tonight and he didn't want Guinevere caught in the middle. When he saw the monkey walk towards the line he asked her if she was done with her food.

"Yes I don't think my intestinal fortitude is up to the level required to eat all of this." She told him.

He snagged both of their trays, ever the gentleman. "Go ahead to the rec room, and I'll meet you there." He told her.

Sam looked at him funny. He seemed nervous suddenly…or a different kind of nervous. "Okay…" She told him standing up.

Murdock got in yet another line…this one to dump the trays and turn them back in. He wanted to get out of there before the monkey started something with him. He knew the type, which was why he'd made a point of punching that one. He tapped his slippered foot impatiently. It was taking too long. But finally after what was only a minute and a half he was done. When he turned back around he noticed that the big ape was no longer in the dining hall, and neither was his princess.

Samantha quickly realized just what it was that Murdock had seen while she made her way to the rec room. "Well hello Specs." A voice said behind her, making her stop in her tracks. Damn, she'd not wanted to deal with anything else tonight.

Bubby walked around in front of her, jaw slightly bruised and one eye looking puffy. She would have grinned at the sight, but she knew better.

"So…you hanging around with the new loon huh?" He asked her, his eyes hard.

Sam didn't say anything. He wasn't supposed to be talking to her like this, but it had never stopped him before. She wished he'd just leave her alone.

"That little shit is trouble Specs. And let me tell you, you don't need anymore trouble. And neither do I." He took a step towards her and took hold of her arm making her look up at him in surprise and fear. He'd never grabbed her before…

"Trouble, oh we got trouble, Right here in River City! With a capital "T" That rhymes with "P"And that stands for Pool," A voice sung out and Murdock slid into place next to Samantha. "P can stand for putz too I suppose…or pummel…or petunia." He grinned crazily up at Bubby. "How's the jaw monkey?" He was smiling as he spoke, but there was just the barest hint of threat in the words.

The orderly looked conflicted. Sam could see he was actually a bit scared of Murdock, but he was also really REALLY pissed off. Before anything could go down between the two of them the sounds of yet another fight in the dining room came their way. Frank, another orderly appeared and called for Bubby. "Their throwing trays man, come on!"

Bubby gave Murdock a glare and then another to Sam. He let go of her arm with a rough jerk and then headed to the dining room. Murdock watched him go with a glare of his own then turned back to see Sam shaking slightly and rubbing her arm where the man had gripped it. "No taste in music that guy." The pilot gazed at her, noticing the way she wasn't responding to what he'd said as she normally did. He was losing her. That wasn't good. The monkey had her scared, which of course was what they were there for. A distraction was needed.

He put an arm around her waist and started leading her down the hall to the rec room. "Movie time," He said with a flourish. "You like movies right? I mean…who doesn't like movies?"

Samantha glanced up at Murdock as though through a fog. "Of course I like movies. I love movies."

"Oh good, I'd hate to have to disown you…although I'm not your mom so I can't really disown you can I?" They went into the half empty rec room and Murdock steered them to the couch in front of the TV. "If I was your mom that would be really weird…forget I said that." He placed a hand on her shoulder and made her sit down.

Murdock looked around valiantly for the remote to the television. It was of course no where to be found. Then he realized it was probably in the cushions of the couch, as remotes seemed to think couch cushions were their native land. Samantha watched as he fought the couch in a no hold barred battle of wills until he triumphantly withdrew the remote as though brandishing Excalibur. "Hazzah, Shazam, and booya!" He declared.

Sam shook her head grinning. "You are the slayer of couches good sir." Whatever it was that made Murdock, well Murdock, was making her forget the incident in the hall. Or at least helping her not worry about what Bubby's threats meant. She'd no doubt start worrying about it later. But right then he was keeping her attention on him.

"And don't you forget it." He said, flopping down next to her. He started flipping channels, but as they were limited to maybe a grand total of six it wasn't as much fun as it could have been. A familiar tune came through the speakers and the pilot stopped flipping as an even more familiar shape of a woman standing in front of a store eating a pastry came on the screen. "Oh yeah, here we go." He said and settled back against the cushions.

Samantha gave him a surprised look. "You like Breakfast at Tiffany's?"

"That's one thing we've got." He responded back automatically, his eyes not leaving the screen.

Sam popped him lightly on the arm grinning at the song lyric he'd just quoted then made herself comfortable. A few minutes passed and she let out a little growling sound that made Murdock turn and stare at her. She grinned at him. "George Peppard….woof." She said by way of explanation.

"I always preferred Banacek myself…but to each their own Peppard." He told her, turning back to the movie.

"Space Cowboy…he's my favorite." She said and drew her legs up beneath her.

Murdock looked at her with wide eyes. She'd actually seen Battle Beyond the Stars?

"Of course I've seen Battle Beyond the Stars. What do you take me for?" It was Sam's turn to look offended, and Murdock realized he'd said that thought aloud. "It's because I'm a girl isn't it?"

"Sorry sorry! Don't hit me…I just meant…well...okay I've not met many girls who've seen it." Murdock prayed for mercy. She looked ready to strangle him. "That means…you're special!"

"Bah!" Sam huffed, crossed her arms over her chest and turned back to watch Holly Golightly freak out over the death of her brother.

Murdock slumped down and watched too. Then a thought occurred to him and he smiled just a bit. Dinner and a movie… "You know…" he said carefully. "In some cultures this would be considered a date." Samantha's head turned slowly towards him, her eyes narrowed behind her glasses.

"Dinner…movie…drooling…all part of the experience or so I've been told." He looked at her sheepishly. "Or just another night at the loony bin."

Samantha sighed and gave him a smile. This could be a problem; you couldn't stay mad at him. "There's not much difference between the two." She told him laughing softly.

The relief spread across his face and he relaxed back into the tattered couch. Sam watched him for a few seconds and then on an impulse scooted closer and leaned her head against his shoulder as the movie continued.

Right then Murdock knew that if the monkey tried to touch her again he'd use the trick that BA had shown him some time ago. It was the one that entailed breaking every bone in the other guy's hand.

Moon River started playing again and the two of them hummed along.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: All I have to say is that the A-Team should have made a hell of a lot more money. I vote we swarm the theaters this weekend and demand they trade out that god awful 3D dance movie for prints of the A-Team. I could handle Sharlto Copley, Brad Cooper, Liam Neeson, and Rampage Jackson in 3D…couldn't you? Actually…I'd like to ask for the chance to handle any of them. They are all pretty.**

**Authors Note: You all rule. Thank you for the favorites and the reviews. I love all of ya'all. So please keep the reviews coming. It's the only way I know you're still reading. **

**This is a fluffy chapter, but I finally FINALLY get to have Murdock say something that I've always loved from the show. You'll know it if you've seen the episode. But I think fluff is warranted because I'm about to pull some grade A angst soon. And there will be crying and restraints involved. You're warned.**

**Also, all the Airwolf reference is inspired by an interview SC did where he actually sung the theme song perfectly (there are no words to the Airwolf theme song, its all music...he hummed it in key) He's magic I'm telling you. MAGIC.**

Chapter 6

Murdock's "date" with Samantha ended once the pill pusher showed up. He realized he hadn't even known her last name until the monkey dosing out the meds shouted "Foster!" and she winced at the sound.

"Oh yay…" She muttered and then lifted her head from his shoulder and stood. He watched her walk over a slight pout to his lips. Airwolf was starting and darn it they were enjoying it.

"You've eaten today right?" Trey, the orderly who was assigned med duty asked her. Apparently word had gotten around about her last performance. He had a wary expression on his face.

"Yes. I had lunch and dinner." She responded sighing. Sam just wanted to get this over with. She swallowed her pills, glanced at the clock and started her countdown. She headed back to the couch and flopped down heavily.

"Snack time?" Murdock inquired.

"I only wish they were Skittles." She told him. On screen Jan Michael Vincent was talking to his boss with the eye patch. "I always wondered what crappy luck that guy had. Losing an eye and then having to wear glasses too. Why bother having a lens on the patch side?"

Murdock looked thoughtful. "Help prevent dry socket?" He offered.

Sam gave him a "what the hell?" look. "That's gross. Plus…I don't think that would work. And that only happens to teeth doesn't it?"

He shrugged, his attention drawn back to the sight of the helicopter now quickly flying across the desert. "Oh man, that's pretty." His voice was reverent. "Look at that. I mean yeah, I could fly her better. But still…that's a thing of beauty."

Sam watched him, smiling at the pure joy on his face as he watched the helicopter soaring. His eyes were wide and shining. With the hat on his head he looked twelve. She glanced back at the screen after checking the clock. "It is pretty awesome." She said, "But I'd probably be passed out if I was inside it."

The pilot turned to her with an even wider eyed stare. "Why would you be passed out? We'd be having a blast. Firefox is nothing compared to Airwolf. That there is a chopper for the ages."

Sam grinned despite herself. "I don't deny the fact that Airwolf is bad ass. I'm just terrified of flying."

Murdock's jaw dropped. He looked like someone had punched him in the gut. "You're afraid of flying?" He asked her in shock his voice a little too loud.

Sam suddenly felt like she'd done something wrong. She glanced around to see if anyone was looking at them. "Uhm…yeah…I am."

"Why?" He sounded confused and even…hurt?

"I just am. My dad tried to get me to go up with him a few times, and for some reason I just couldn't handle it. I started crying and I was terrified." Sam wondered why it bothered her so much he was reacting this way.

"But…but…" Murdock was trying to wrap his head around this. His princess didn't like to fly? How the heck was that possible? His princess? That just made no sense.

Samantha realized she may have just opened up a can of worms with her statement. She didn't mean to hurt his feelings. She had no idea it would bother him as much as it did. It was obvious from the expression in his green eyes though. "Murdock…I just never…"

He looked up at his real name. She didn't use it often, maybe once before. He also realized something. This was just one more part of his duty as a knight. He had to help her overcome this fear of hers. He could hear BA yelling at him about this revelation and how crazy headed a fool he was and if anyone couldn't get someone over a fear of flying it was him. That was like putting the wolf in charge of the hen house. Or in his case an Airwolf in charge of the hen house. Either way…

"You've not flown with me." He nodded emphatically as he spoke. "You'll see though. Whole new world, soaring and tumbling, freewheeling through an endless…wait…that's a Disney song." He paused, shook his head again. "Same principal though. You just need to be shown what flying is really all about then you won't be afraid."

Sam's expression was a combination of amusement and slight worry. He seemed convinced they'd at some point in the future be flying around in a plane together. She didn't even know if she'd make it out of Bay Ridge with her whole sanity intact ever, much less be out into the world with the man next to her in a helicopter or something. Although the thought wasn't as horrific as she'd expect it to be, it was still just a fantasy…much like her original idea that he was a knight. That thought reminded her to check the time. She had two minutes.

"Murdock!" Trey's voice called out.

"Time for my snack." He said with a grin and headed over to get his nightly meds.

Samantha watched him walk away. "Lancelot, you're a great fantasy but real life doesn't play nice." She said softly. She stood up and managed to leave without being noticed. She slipped into the bathroom and after a few horrible minutes had retched up the medicine. She washed out her mouth a few times and splashed water on her face. This always sucked and now she really wanted to just go to bed.

Sam walked back out into the hall. She hesitated in heading to her room; even though she was now good and worn out she felt bad about leaving Murdock without saying goodnight. Sam headed back to the rec room. Murdock was sitting back on the couch, but he was glancing around as if looking for her. Yeah, she was glad she'd come back. Sam smiled tiredly as she slipped back into the room. The pilot's face brightened when he saw her.

"Where'd you go? I thought you'd been eaten by the couch. " He said scooting over to make room.

"Restroom." She told him, not sitting down.

Murdock noticed she seemed paler, and her hair was damp around her ears and forehead. "You okay Guinevere? " He stood up and placed a hand on her arm, just in case she was in a fainting mood again.

She gave a nervous laugh, glancing over to make sure that Trey wasn't noticing them. "I'm fine Lancelot. I'm just tired. I think I'm going to call it a night."

"Oh…" Murdock looked disappointed. He was enjoying their TV time. She had good taste, except for the flying thing. But he'd fix that.

Samantha looked at the floor. "Yeah, I'm just…everything…you know…"

Murdock understood. It had been a long day for her, nap or no. "Shall I escort you to your chambers?" He asked her, once again slipping seamlessly into his role.

Well, she didn't mind him knowing where her room was. He certainly didn't act like he'd hurt her. "Certainly." She answered, giving him a smile and a short curtsy.

Trey gave them both an odd look as they left the rec room, but didn't stop them. Murdock offered her his arm again and she took it. They walked the empty hallway in an easy silence, a rarity for the pilot. He was thinking about the mystery that she was, and she was wondering how Rory was doing. When they arrived near her door she slipped her arm from his.

"Thank you for walking me home." Sam laughed a little nervously. But Murdock looked fairly serious…at least for him.

"Are you sure you're alright princess?" He asked her, peering at her closely.

"It's Samantha." She told him. "Or Sam…and I am not a princess." She reminded him.

"Yes you are…" He told her shaking his head again. "I don't know why you keep forgetting it."

She shook her head at him, something he inspired a lot. "I don't look like a princess or feel like one." She said her voice tired. "At least you meet the criteria for a knight."

Murdock's eyes narrowed at her. "Then I should know a princess when I see one." His voice was matter of fact.

"Bah." Sam rolled her eyes. "Maybe I should loan you my glasses."

He didn't laugh. Instead he grasped hold of her chin and stared right into her eyes with his large bluish green gaze. Sam felt suddenly pinned to where she stood.

"Pretty girl." He said; no false accent, nothing false at all, nothing but two simple words and a light stroke of his thumb along her jaw.

Sam felt that calloused touch all the way down to her toes, and that scared her just enough to remind her to breathe. He didn't look away or move for what felt like forever but was only another two or three seconds. Then he let go of her chin with one last brush of his fingers. He stepped back, still not blinking or looking away. "That's what I see princess. Don't let anyone else tell you different. You're whatever you want to be."

He grinned, blinking those all seeing green eyes, the Murdock that she knew slipping back into place. "Me, I'm the best damn pilot in the world and a Ranger in one of the most kick ass units you'll ever see. I just happen to be a knight sworn to protect you and the royal family of Camelot on my days off. Those are the facts baby."

Samantha was nearly dizzy from the about face he'd done. The pilot gave her one more knowing grin. "Sleep tight princess. I'll see you tomorrow, same bat time, same bat channel." He turned and started walking away, then after reaching into his pocket turned and tossed something at her. She somehow caught it and saw him wink at her before heading back towards the rec room.

Sam looked down in her hand and saw he'd left her with a goodnight kiss.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I should be doing something else. But I'm writing this. Damn it Murdock…stop with the brain nibbling!**

**Authors Note: Plot thickens! ANGST (but not nearly enough yet…we're building to that.) I love these two together. I truly do. And thank you so much for the reviews! I like hearing what you all have to say about this. And I'm glad that I have helped others in the Cult of Murdock. Sharlto Copley, this is all you're fault. But it truly started with Dwight Schultz. I love you both and will gladly be the filling in your man sandwich. **

**I'm sorry that was rather graphic wasn't it? Moving on…Please review!**

Chapter 7

Sam found herself waking up only once during the night to a nightmare. It wasn't a surprising really. Her father had been the one being rolled out on the gurney instead of Rory. There had been no knight in a bathrobe to keep her from running to where he was being taken away. The monkeys had descended on her.

Bubby had glowing red eyes and sharp fang like teeth. He'd laughed as he'd grabbed her, pulling her arms behind her back and cackling like the fiend he truly was. Another of the monsters joined him in dragging her back to the treatment room as her father was rolled away from her, Sam yelling his name and crying for them to stop.

The treatment room was truly something that belonged in a nightmare. The walls were cracked, grey, and covered in what looked like old dried blood. Numerous tables with various machines out of some Tesla acid trip were scattered about. Sam was tossed onto one by Bubby who leered at her while she was chained to it.

A head piece that looked like a twisted crown of thorns and wires was shoved onto her head. She fought and turned trying to get free of them, of it…and saw Murdock next to her. His large green eyes were staring up at the ceiling, his skin was chalk white, and there were trails of blood seeping down his forehead where his own crown set.

"Time for your treatment girlie girl." Bubby's voice resonated in the room. "Look at how much it helped him." He laughed and Samantha screamed.

She sat bolt up in the bed, her breathing ragged and sweat pouring down her face. Sam looked around wildly for a moment, half expecting either Bubby to be standing over her, or worse yet Murdock lying motionless and seemingly dead. Jesus, maybe she should just take the pills.

She took a few deep breaths and then fell back onto the mattress. Her father and Rory switching places had made sense of course, but Sam was still surprised by her reaction to seeing Murdock laying there so motionless…so not him. She's only known him less than two days, but seeing him like that had felt so…bad wasn't enough to cover it. She glanced over at her nightstand and saw that the Hershey's kiss was still there. For some reason that madder her feel a little bit better.

Sam let out a groan. She'd be lucky if she slept anymore that night. She suddenly missed real coffee. The only stuff they had here was decaf and it was worse than paint thinner. She grabbed a pillow and pulled it over her head.

It was hard enough sleeping there. Sometimes she could hear yelling, screams, crying…all through the walls. When she did get some rest this stuff happened. She would have screamed herself if she didn't think it would garner her a visit from a mon…an orderly. But then they might sedate her and she'd get some sleep. Oh what a tangled web we weave. Damned if you do damned if you don't.

Eventually she did go back to sleep. Thankfully no more dreams haunted her. In the morning she woke up not quite rested, but enough that she could function. She snagged her glasses from the table and found another mismatched set of what she laughingly called lounge wear. Worn pajama pants covered in Superman logos and a t-shirt with a bat symbol that stated "Batman does it with attachments." Holding them and her bag of toiletries she went about her routine of showering, tooth brushing, and trying to wake up fully.

When she emerged with her hair still wet and yawning she dumped her stuff back off in her room and her clothes in the small hamper in the corner. Then she headed towards the cafeteria. She was actually wondering if she drank the awful sludge they passed off as coffee that she could trick herself into thinking it contained blessed caffeine. Samantha got in line with the half dozen other patients and waited.

She looked around for Murdock and didn't see him anywhere. Of course that could be because of a million different things. She ignored the twinge of disappointment mixed with the tiniest bit of fear that he wasn't there. That damn nightmare was still too fresh in her mind. She reached into the pocket of her hoodie and pulled out the piece of chocolate. Sam grinned remembering his saucy little wink after he'd tossed it at her. "Goober." She said aloud, and then unwrapping it and popping it into her mouth.

"Princess you really need to learn your candy." A voice said next to her ear causing her to jump.

"GAH!" She looked over to find Murdock had somehow snuck up on her. "Jeesh, are you a ninja now?"

"Not ninja, pilot." He pointed at himself. "Not Nestle, Hershey." He pointed at the now empty wrapper.

She noticed that the line had moved while she'd been having her slight heart attack. Sam walked forward. "For your information I know the difference. The Goober I mentioned was you." She poked him in the arm for emphasis.

"Hey now, why am I a Goober?" Murdock stayed behind her and waited for an answer.

"Chocolate covered nut you would most likely find at a movie theater." She replied giving him a big grin.

The pilot looked thoughtful, and then sighed. "Okay, I concede that when you put it THAT way…"

They each picked up their breakfast which once again consisted of fake eggs, a piece of toast, and a banana. When Sam went to reach for the coffee Murdock grabbed her wrist. "It's a trick!" His voice rose for effect.

"I need it…I know it's fake." She told him, filling a Styrofoam cup with the brown mess and grabbing enough sweetener and creamer to choke a horse. It helped cover up the taste. Murdock shook his head and followed her to a table where they sat next to each other. She dumped everything into the coffee and stirred.

"You look tired Guinevere." He observed while pulling the bottle of hot sauce she knew he'd have out of his pocket.

Sam took a sip and grimaced, then took another. "I am tired…I didn't sleep well last night. I had a nightmare."

He offered her the bottle, his dark eyebrows narrowed in a look of concern.

"I should be used to them by now. I mean…I live in one all the time." She said as she shook the red sauce all over her eggs.

"What was it about?" He asked her. Sam looked up in surprise. He didn't sound…like him. His voice was all seriousness. Another switcheroo, she should be used to it.

Samantha took a bite of her eggs. "Here…my father…the monkeys…and you." She added the last almost as a whisper. She hid the sinking feeling the memory caused by taking another sip of the awful coffee.

"Me?" Murdock looked surprised. She'd been dreaming about him? Wow…that was a new one. Face was going to really be jealous. Then he remembered she'd said it was a nightmare. Well maybe not so jealous when he found out he was suddenly turning into Freddy Krueger. "What was I doing in your head?" He asked trying to be subtle…he really was worried he was chasing after her with a glove full of razors. That would just put a big ol' dent in the nobility thing.

Being dead or you might as well have been, she thought. She took another bite of eggs. "It was a nightmare Murdock. You really…I don't…ugh." She sighed and pushed her tray away. She didn't want to remember it and she was no longer hungry.

"Hey…eat your banana. Potassium is good for you." He gestured at her tray with his own banana. "If you don't want to tell me that's okay." He started peeling the piece of fruit. "Just tell me if I was wearing a red and green sweater and welcoming you to prime time."

She looked at him with wide eyes behind her glasses. "What the hell are you talking about? Of course you weren't…wait a minute…why would you be Freddy Krueger? You're not a?" She looked scared for a minute.

"No! Jeesh…no I'm not a…Christ on a cracker, forget I said that. Eat your banana." Murdock took a large bite of his own and looked upwards, praying for a sign that he would some day say the right thing to a woman.

Sam gave him a wary glare and then decided there was no way he was either a child molester or a child killer…or both. She picked up her banana since he kept pointing at it and started peeling it. "It was just a bad dream." She said softly and took a bite.

"Maybe you shouldn't be gagging out your meds." He told, glancing away towards the wall.

Sam nearly choked on her second bite of banana. "What?"

"The old running to the bathroom trick." Murdock finished his piece of fruit and then cracked open his milk. "I've done it myself a time or two. But sometimes those meds do help."

Sam shook her head no emphatically. She was surprised he'd known what she'd done. "Oh god…did I smell like…"

Murdock chuckled. "No…don't worry about that. I'm just observant. People just don't expect me to be." He took a drink of milk and he gave her sympathetic look. "But maybe you shouldn't be doing it."

"The pills….they don't help what I've got going on Murdock. They just make me crazy." Sam sighed heavily, running her fingers through her hair.

"Isn't that why you're here?" He looked confused. "I mean, that's why they tell me I'm here. I'm assuming that's the same for everyone."

She laughed but it wasn't a happy one. "That's what the paperwork says."

The pilot saw the greens and blues of her eyes turn sad, or at least sadder than they normally were. He didn't like that. "Princess why are you here?" He asked her at last, his voice soft enough that she nearly didn't hear it.

She stared at him, right into his forest green gaze. She hadn't even told Rory the whole thing. She'd not told anyone. Partially because it was dangerous knowledge to be had. Stewart was playing with some very bad people. "Murdock…it's a long story." She sighed again, slumping as if the weight of the world was on her shoulders.

"I've got time." He leaned back, adjusting his baseball cap. "So bring it."

She gave him a small smile. He figured that was a good sign.

"How long it is isn't the whole problem." She frowned. "I'm…I don't want you to be in trouble because of me. You or anyone else... And if you know what's going on you could be. And I…I don't want to see you like you were in my dream okay?" A brief wince of pain crossed her features.

He was looking at her all serious again. She could feel those eyes, heavy green blankets of leaves falling over her. "Baby don't you remember what I told you last night?"

Sam felt awkward, intimidated. So she tried to laugh it off "That Firefox was a junker compared to Airwolf?" She replied while staring at the remains of her breakfast.

Much like the night before he grabbed her chin and made her look up at him. His fingers were tighter this time, as though making sure she realized what he was saying wasn't a joking matter. The expression in his eyes conveyed that too. The switch had been thrown once more.

The southern lilt to his voice was heavier, rougher. His lean face was close to hers so when he spoke it needed only to be above a whisper. "Like I told you…I'm a Ranger. We don't run from trouble, we take care of it. So tell me what sort of trouble you are in Samantha."


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: UHm…read the previous ones. Also, do a search on YouTube for "Sharlto Copley Hellweek" and you will NOT be disappointed. You'll just lose what's left of your soul to him, that's all.**

**Authors Note: This chapter helped me deal with anger issues stemming from Marvel not putting him in the Avengers. Mwahaha…It also has helped me deal with some bad crap that has gone down personally this week. Thank you Murdock, you make life more tolerable. Continue to chew on my brain.**

**Reviews are once again encouraged and thanks are sent out to everyone who has favorited and reviewed so far. **

Chapter 8

Samantha and Murdock sat in a far corner of the rec room on a couple of bean bag chairs that looked like they'd escaped from the Brady Bunch house. Murdock wasn't on the approved list for being allowed in the yard, so this was as good as it was going to get for the time being.

Sam, although still getting used to Murdock's many mood swings and personalities, was still trying to figure out how the guy next to her stretching out a wad of Silly Putty and swinging it around his head like a cowboy was the same man who just ten minutes before had demanded to know what sort of danger she was in. Add to that his saying her real name and the way it had rolled off his tongue as if it was a hot fudge sundae and Samantha realized she'd walked into the Twilight Zone.

Murdock's experiment with whatever the heck they made Silly Putty out of was going to get boring real soon. He wondered what would happen if he set it on fire. Could you cook Silly Putty? He'd eaten Play Dough before, but who hadn't? It had turned his mouth blue for a week. His keepers at that VA hospital hadn't been too pleased with him. And why was Guinevere not spilling the beans yet?

"You're not making with the talkie talkie." He said, wadding the putty back into a ball and wondering if there were any comic books lying around that he could use it with.

"Yeah I know…" She muttered in reply.

"Don't make me use my putty lasso of truth on you, cause I will. And…I think this stuff will stain your clothes. So keep that in mind." He told her over his shoulder as he rummaged about the pile of magazines that were lying in the corner next to them.

Sam looked at him warily. "I swear if you start wearing a tiara and spandex I'm out of here."

"Ha!" He announced triumphantly. "And no, I'm not gonna start spinning in a circle and fighting for anyone's rights in satin tights." He turned around clutching a dog eared comic book in his hand. "But I'd better start hearing some origin story in the next couple minutes."

Murdock smoothed out the comic book on his lap, opening it up to a random page. There was a large green creature in purple ripped shorts fighting what appeared to be a tank. "Hulk smash…" Murdock snarled grinning and smacked the putty across the picture with the palm of his hand. He looked over at her "Don't make me angry, you wouldn't like me when I'm angry." He cocked a brow at her. "So spill it baby."

Sam flopped back onto the hideous bean bag and stared up at the ceiling. "I really don't want to do this…" She told the large dark water stain that was looking back at her.

"Rage increasing." Murdock said while pulling up the putty from the page. There was the Hulk's big green face which he started stretching and deforming.

"Fine….Far be it from me to make you go all David Banner on this place." She turned and glared at him.

"Bruce Banner, not David. And let's have it already." The pilot rolled the putty back up into a multi colored ball and started tossing it up in the air.

"David Banner was the name he went by on the TV show I'll have you know. I prefer my Banner's Bixbyish and not Banaish if I have a choice." She glowered at him some more.

Murdock gave her an appraising glance. "Hmmm…" He pursed his lips and then went back to tossing the ball some more. "Noted. Now if you don't mind I'd prefer not to start becoming a green eyed monster with a bad haircut."

Sam rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath "Too late…" which garnered her bag a quick kick by a converse ensconced foot.

She decided she had nothing to lose. Even if what he said was true about being a Ranger with a kick ass unit there was nothing he could do and who'd believe him anyway. He was stuck in the nut house with her. Plus...he probably wasn't going to be getting out anytime soon. He'd probably forget most of it in the next couple of days besides.

There was part of her that really wanted to tell someone. Even if it was another patient, it would be at least somebody and she wouldn't feel so all alone. Plus she liked Murdock.

And that was part of the problem. She liked him and she didn't want him to get hurt if by some bizarre reason the guys Stewart had linked himself with found out someone knew the truth. She was actually still surprised she was still alive. Stewart must have thought this was a way to keep her quiet without putting her at risk of being killed. Some sense of brotherly love…the little shit thought he was doing her a favor.

"Ugh…" She groaned, earning her another withering glance from the pilot.

"Alright alright…" She sat up and took a deep breath. "Here's the story…" And Sam relayed the entirety of it to him. She held nothing back, her fathers illness, putting up with her mother and her brother, Stewart's downward spiral and his dragging the company into that spiral with him. Then she told him about her discovery and the confrontation with Stewart and what he'd done by putting her in here and getting her falsely stamped as insane.

Samantha fell back heavily onto the bean bag chair, suddenly feeling like she'd been gutted. She'd only glanced a few times at the pilot as she'd spoken. His face was tense, but unreadable. When she got to the end and how she'd come to be here Sam had thought she'd seen his fingers clench up into a fist.

"I'm not an idiot. I know what I know is dangerous." She took off her glasses and rubbed between her eyes. "I'm sure Stewart in his twisted little brain thought he was putting me somewhere safe…"

"He's never been inside then…" Murdock said, his voice deceptively soft.

"Like I said, I'm not an idiot. He knew I'd report it. But who's going to listen to a lunatic?" She slipped her glasses back on and glanced at him.

"Another lunatic of course." He told her, smiling slightly.

"Well…yeah…" She gave him a sad smile back. "But what he doesn't know is I made a copy of all the data. I knew they'd try and hide it all or erase it. Before this all came down I backed it all up on a portable drive and have it tucked away. If something does happen to me, well…it's a nice flip of the bird to the bastards who've taken my dad's company and tainted it."

Murdock's green eyes rested on her, his long fingers rolling the putty ball back and forth over his knuckles. "Do you think he's told them what you know?" He asked, sounding like he had in the dining room, all seriousness.

"I don't know. They may have already figured it out. I don't even know if my uncles okay, or my dad. My mother and I have never been the best of friends. She's probably seeing me being in here as an affront to her." Sam scratched the back of her neck, her gaze roaming the walls. "It's such a mess Murdock. Everything…and I have no idea what to do. I've never been a hundred percent up here…" She pointed at her head, turning back to face him. "I don't think anyone ever is really…but being locked up and told you're nuts over and over again doesn't necessarily help you stay not crazy."

Murdock tossed the putty ball into the air and pulled out the top pocket of his bathrobe, catching it squarely in it. "Being locked up doesn't help anything princess." He told her standing up and stretching his lanky frame. He offered her his hand. "Come on, I feel like taking a walk."

She looked at him strangely but took his hand and stood up. He slipped her arm through his and walked them out through the rec room.

"You weren't kidding when you said you had troubles." He told her, waving at Dwayne who had been given a towel to catch his never ending trail of drool down his chin.

"Duh..." She replied.

"Well as your personal champion I feel its part of my duty to point that out first." They were walking down the hallway now and back towards the dining room. "Secondly, and this is the part you really need to listen to..." He stopped and turned to look at her. "You're tangled with some dangerous people thanks to your loser brother. I know the type…trust me…" He looked irritated for a moment, his eyes gazing around the hallway.

"Murdock you're not telling me anything I don't already know." Samantha sounded tired. "Again, that's why I didn't want to tell you any of this."

His eyes suddenly zeroed in on hers and Sam's voice suddenly failed her. "I can take care of myself." He told her. "But you're not safe in here Samantha. And that's what worries me."

Sam felt her heart start beating faster at what he'd said. She knew that too, but hearing him say it didn't help matters. "Thanks for the reminder…"

He squeezed her hand making her look back up at him. "I'm still your knight princess, don't forget that either." He gave her a crazy grin.

That crazy grin helped her feel a little bit better. "I haven't forgotten that Lancelot." She squeezed his fingers back. "But you aren't a part of this mess. And I don't want you hurt because of me if something happens."

His gaze narrowed at her. "Are you trying to tell me not to do my duty?"

"I'm trying to tell you…argh…I just don't want you hurt or worse okay? It's not your fight." She tried to pull away but he wouldn't let her, his fingers gripped her hand tightly.

"You don't tell a Ranger not to do his job darlin." Murdock's voice made her freeze, that same rough southern edge cutting into her again. "You don't tell me not to do my job. And I've decided that's keeping you safe because that's what knights do when they find a princess…even the ones who forget who they are…even the ones who think they can tell a solider to stop being a solider."

His face came closer to hers and Sam felt his breath brush her cheek while his forest fire colored eyes burned into her. "I've been through things that would make you crawl into the floor to try and hide. I've been held prisoner for days while men who's soul purpose on this world was to cause me pain took their sweet ass time doing it because it would hurt longer. I've seen men lose arms, legs, their heads…the same goes for kids and women too. I've held friends in my arms while they died."

Sam swallowed down the lump in her throat and tried to keep her eyes from tearing up at the knowledge he'd just decided to share with her. He stopped for a moment as though trying to keep himself in check.

Murdock realized he was probably scaring her, and that wasn't what he was trying to do. He wanted her to understand he just couldn't switch it off. He was what he was…and nothing was going to change it. He was getting frustrated, and that always made him grouchy…and crave chocolate. And he hadn't remembered to raid his stash this morning.

"Yes I'm nuts," He told her, "yes I'm broken…but I'm still me. I'm still a solider and that's what I'll always be. I protect and keep safe what needs protection from the bad things this world has in it. And right now that's you. So don't ever tell me not to do my duty because…well…you wouldn't like me when I'm angry."

"I'm sorry…" She squeaked out and he felt her fingers tremble in his grasp.

Crap…he'd overdone it…good job dummy. Murdock shook his head clear.

"Hey…I…don't be scared of me okay?" He loosened his grip on her hand, taking a step back so he wasn't crowding her. "I really don't want you scared of me…"

His eyes had softened and his voice had too, back to that southern drawl that she recognized. Sam resisted the urge to run away from him. "I…I'm not scared of you." Okay she was lying a little bit there.

"You're lying…" He pouted, looking crestfallen.

Crap, Sam thought. "I'm…okay maybe a little scared. But Murdock you're telling me all of this and I've known you barely two days. I mean I've just told you something I haven't even told Rory and I've known him since I've been in here."

He suddenly grinned. "But that just proves it. Knights know their destinies. You and me! Fate! "

He was impossible to argue with when he grinned like a little kid, even though he'd just been telling her about watching people die only moments before. She really was losing her mind.

"Alright Lancelot you win." Sam smiled back at him finally and his grin grew in size.

"Murdock!" A voice called down the hall causing them both to jump. Sam and the pilot looked towards the sound and saw an orderly motioning him with his hand. "You've got a phone call from your cousin Rosco…"

"Rosco?" Sam said turning back to face him.

Murdock's eyes were shining. "Rosco P. Coltrane…he's a sheriff."

"Wait a minute…" Sam looked confused. She knew that name. "Where is he a sheriff?" She asked suspicious.

"I'll be right back." He said not answering her question, but instead went walking up towards the wall phone where inmates were allowed their calls humming a very familiar tune.

When Murdock got up to the phone he put it to his ear and said "Just a good old boy."

"Never meaning no harm?" Face replied from the receiver.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: Screw the Teen Choice Awards. Moving on….**

**Authors Note: Okay, so this entire chapter came out of its own accord. I didn't know this scene was going to take place until it sort of wrote itself out. It's completely random, but I wound up loving it. Also, we get more protective growly Murdock (yay.) And yes, I throw in another D9 reference because…well…damn it I can.**

**This chapter turned out to be a long one. Who knew? Also, prepare for the heart breaking. Enjoy the happy while its here. The evil author is going for blood most likely the next chapter. Heheheehee (ducks from flying objects) Review !**

Chapter 9

Murdock was on the phone for a bit longer than intended. But when a Duke Call was made that was a sign.

Face and the team all knew that phone calls were monitored. They were still wanted by the Government for breaking out of jail. They were still fugitives and there was always the vendetta by Lynch 2.0 and the CIA to contend with.

But even fugitives needed to eat, and Murdock hadn't just been talking about himself when it came to a soldier always being a soldier. The Colonel, Face, BA, and Murdock made a living by helping those who needed it. Soldiers not really making a fortune would be a good phrase. Sometimes they took jobs knowing they'd never see a dime simply because it was the right thing to do.

This last job, the one that had landed Murdock in the latest of a long streak of loony bins hadn't been the most successful. Mainly because the client hadn't been entirely truthful on the fact of who it was they were in trouble with and why. When you find out your client is actually the bad guy and the cops show up…you know it's a bad day.

Murdock had gotten separated from Face in the fire fight. Due to his medical history he hadn't been thrown into a slammer…he'd been thrown into the local VA hospital due to the stray bullet that had been the reason for his falling behind. From there he'd wound up in Bay Ridge with his princess. God bless red tape and paperwork.

Face and his Duke Call was a sign that the boys were gearing up to get him out. They all knew that phone calls were traced and especially any phone calls to Murdock when he was locked away. It had happened only once before…and that was a colorful and long story that involved a camera crew, an aerosol can, shrimp…and lots of jell-o. It had taken some amazing damn heroics on the team's part to get him out of that one.

Face had come up with a system for such emergencies. He'd hit a 7-11 and nab up a cheap disposable cell phone and call Murdock posing as Roscoe. If that was the call, it meant to be ready and the code spoken would give an idea of how long till the escape. If he called as Sonny Crockett, that meant a delay and to hold tight. Miami Vice calls were the worst kind.

But now Murdock had at least an idea that a break out was in the works. He was humming happily when he headed back to where he'd left Samantha. But she wasn't there. He pursed his lips and looked around. Darn it…now where had she run off to?

Samantha had waited patiently until she'd seen Rory walking slowly into the rec room. At that point her curiosity about Murdock's phone call from Hazzard County was forgotten. She practically ran after her friend.

Samantha found Rory standing next to the game shelf looking at what boxes where there. She realized that startling him might not be the best thing. So instead she slowly walked over to him and said his name softly, almost afraid of what she would see.

Rory turned at the sound, his eyes tired and slightly dull. But when he saw her he smiled. "Hey kiddo…" His voice was rough too, unused for a couple of days…or maybe used too much. Screams tended to do that to you too.

Sam felt tears pricking her eyes; she'd been so worried about him. Not hesitating she threw her arms around him and hugged him tight surprising him. "You scared the hell out of me." She told him.

Rory was still a little rattled but after a second he hugged her back, patting her shoulder. She was a sweet kid. "Hey now…no blubbering over the old guy. I told you it would take a lot more than they could dish out to make a dent." Rory felt a bit of a tear in his eye too but he wouldn't admit it. It was nice for someone to give a damn.

Murdock chose that moment to check the rec room. When he saw the reunion of the Wizard with his princess he smiled. He knew first hand how worried she was about him. Even though Murdock had a feeling the Wizard could withstand anything the monkeys could dish out, it was still good to see him up and about.

When Sam pulled away and wiped her cheek she heard a soft clearing of a throat from behind her. She turned and found Murdock standing there. She grinned and glanced at Rory who was looking at the younger man with his own bemused expression. "Rory, this is Murdock. Murdock this is Rory."

"The Wizard." Murdock grinned and gave a salute.

"Lancelot." Rory replied and saluted right back.

Sam shook her head and sighed. Reality didn't stand a chance against these guys.

For the rest of the day the three of them played Trivial Pursuit, which was Sam's game of choice. She never lost…until that day when she and Murdock went toe to toe. Rory just sat back and watched in awe as the two of them fired off answer after answer, the actual rules forgotten after the first three games were played.

It was a battle of trivia really, and Rory was sitting back and sipping on his cup of green tea as Murdock assailed Sam with a barrage of questions. The first wrong answer and she had to start asking Murdock. All the rules went out the window eventually. Glares were given, scowls were exchanged.

Rory had never seen Sam look so…well damn, he'd seen a feral cat once that matched her attitude. He decided it would be best just to keep an eye out so the orderlies didn't come over since they both seemed agitated.

And they were actually breathing heavily…like they'd ran a race or…well…something else. At one point Rory saw a glimmer in Sam's eyes that made him feel like he was intruding just sitting there, that same glimmer was showing in Lancelot's green eyes too. Rory felt a tad bit uncomfortable.

"Impressive princess, but you're not going to win that easily." Murdock squinted at her doing a decent Darth Vader impression, measuring her up for the third or fourth time. He'd been at first pleasantly surprised by her ability to keep up with him when it came to what many considered useless facts. Now his competitive nature was taking hold. She wasn't going to beat him. Nope, not gonna happen. He'd never lost a game to any of the team…even the Colonel who was one of the smartest men he knew. And right then he wasn't letting up.

Samantha wasn't going to go down easy. She'd played these sorts of games against science majors, geeks of the highest order, and she'd won. Blame it on growing up without a lot of friends and watching way too much television, blame it on ADD…but her brain held more than the usual amount of trivia. And she prided herself on it. And her knight of the realm wasn't going to beat her without taking a few knocks to what was obviously a large ego. She felt a drop of sweat roll down her temple as she glared at him.

"Bring it flyboy." She said as he announced it was yet another entertainment question.

Murdock's lean face was tensed. Many didn't realize that he had an IQ that was past genius level. It was just one of those things…the things that allowed him to know all the languages he did, the things that allowed him to instinctively fly every type of aircraft he came in contact with as though he was born inside the pilot's seat. And it was the thing that made him unbeatable at Trivial Pursuit. He would not go gently into that night…nope; she was going down…princess or no.

"What's the name of the actress who was the voice of the demon in The Exorcist?" Murdock's voice was nearly demon like as he asked it.

"Mercedes McCambridge." Sam replied without hesitation, and then raised an eyebrow. "You're not even trying Lancelot."

Murdock threw the card down like a gauntlet onto the tabletop. He'd tossed off his ratty robe a while ago because it had started getting warm. Now he was positively baking. He happened to glance over and saw that there was quite a crowd gathered around them. Why were they always attracting a crowd?

Sam noticed too. She was slightly freaked to find that at least half a dozen other patients were watching them rather intently.

"Alright…this is it…we're at a stalemate." The pilot finally admitted. "There's only one way to settle this."

"Lightning Round." They both said in unison. Sam and Murdock gave each a scarily similar half grin, eyes narrowed as though sizing up the final kill shot.

Rory said a prayer.

It went on for another five minutes and at last Sam was the one to fall, and it was a lame reason which she attributed to lack of sleep. What made it worse was it was a Star Wars question. Instead of twelve parsecs, she'd said ten had been the number that Han Solo had completed the Kessel Run in.

Murdock let out a woop of joy. He got to keep his crown. Sam slumped in defeat. The crowd cheered, even though Murdock figured most of them had no idea what they'd been talking about or even doing. Rory looked relieved it was over. The pilot got up and started a conga line which danced around the room. Sam slumped lower in her chair.

"No use being a sore loser Foster." She told herself. Sam glanced over and saw him snapping his fingers and jigging across the floor. "No use being a sore winner either." She said aloud.

Rory laughed, watching her watch the pilot. "Darlin you gave that boy a fight and a half. I wouldn't begrudge him a celebration of keeping his manhood intact. "

"Bah." Sam started gathering up the game and putting it away into its box. She stood and walked over to the shelf.

As soon as she'd placed it there a hand grabbed hers and she was spun in a circle and pulled into Murdock's arms. She eeep'd aloud.

"Victory dance Guinevere." He told her and noticed how she was glowering at him with a fiery bent to her swirly eyes. He pouted, slightly hurt. "Hey I'm allowed. See your enemies crushed before you and hear the lamentations of their women. Or in this case, see your enemies dipped before you." Then he dipped her back gracefully and quickly before she could do or say anything. When he set her back up he could tell he probably should have went with a better role model than Conan.

"You're the first time I've ever had to go all the way to the lightening round." He spun her out and then back and he noticed her grouchy expression was starting to crack. "You're a worthy adversary princess. I think with our powers combined we could be Captain Planet." He stopped realizing that wasn't right…and looking confused.

"I'd prefer Voltron if I have to be a cartoon formed from lesser cartoons." She told him grinning. Once again, she couldn't stay mad at him. God, that was annoying.

"As long as I'm not that freaky green lion guy you've got a deal." He grabbed up a fake plastic flower from a container on the table and put it between his teeth.

"Are you serious?" She asked laughing out right.

He squinted at her and then removed the flower. "You never joke about a tango." He sounded as if he'd stepped off the set of the Mambo Kings. "You never laugh about a tango. It goes against nature and the all mighty Valentino, god rest his soul." He made the sign of the cross, but sadly he did it with the hand holding the garishly pink plastic flower. It took away from the gravity of the gesture unfortunately.

Sam held the need to giggle in check. "I'm truly sorry; I mean no offense to his grace The Sheikh."

"You're forgiven." He told her. Then he popped the flower back into his mouth, grabbed hold of her waist and her right hand and soon had her weaving and moving through the rec room like a contestant on Dancing with the Stars…only he had talent.

Where had he learned to tango? And wow was his cheek warm where it was pressed against hers. Sam found herself sort of breathless as he pulled her around in front of him and managed to get her leg wrapped around one of his. He had her sweeping down low to the floor and back up again, the whole time she was pressed up against the front of him, at least half of her at all times.

He was far stronger than he looked and had that wiry muscled build that belonged to track stars and swimmers. She could feel it beneath his thin, worn t-shirt and the pajama bottoms covering his leg where her calf was hooked around his. Oh this was getting awkward.

Murdock felt like doing something daring. That close call of keeping his trivia crown had stirred him up something fierce. He was enjoying this performance for the house crowd too. And wow she smelled really good this close up…he was pretty sure it wasn't the plastic flower. He liked the fact she let him lead, although he hadn't given her much of a choice. And really that's what a tango was all about, the guy being in control. Wasn't the most PC dance in the world…but he felt frisky.

He tossed the flower away and twirled her out and away from him, keeping hold of her hand and then twirled her back. She was laughing and it was a nice sound to hear. Murdock liked her laugh. It wasn't fake or forced like some of those gals he'd seen Face hanging around with. It was real. It was…a treasure.

But he had a feeling that she might lose it in here. And he couldn't let that happen. Murdock knew that another one of his duties was to make sure she never lost that treasure. That he never lost it. But…it wasn't his…

The pilots green eyes seemed to go out of focus as they stared down at her when Sam found herself back in his arms. One of her hands rested on his shoulder while the other was still secure in his grasp. She was grinning, panting just a bit. She wasn't used to this much activity anymore. Being in Bay Ridge there wasn't a lot of exercise options. Why was he looking at her like that?

"Alright Lawrence Welk…that's enough." A regrettably familiar voice said.

Bubby and Trey were standing nearby, Bubby glowering and Trey actually grinning as though enjoying the show with the rest of the patients.

"He was a band leader son. I think you mean Fred Astaire." Rory tried not to laugh. Bubby wasn't the brightest boy in the bunch but he was one of the biggest. And he vaguely remembered him enjoying the entire strapping him down to the table for the electroshock treatment a bit too much.

Bubby gave the older inmate a glare. "Whatever…their both dead, and this goofball isn't far behind if he doesn't stop with the routine here."

Samantha turned and narrowed her eyes at Bubby. He had no right to threaten Murdock; in fact he wasn't allowed to do such a thing. He could get in a lot of trouble for that. But of course someone would have to give a damn enough to do it. "Hey, we're just dancing." She said and then realized she'd actually talked back to him.

The big orderly had a sick grin spread across his face. "And that's not allowed…princess."

Sam felt Murdock's grip around her waist tighten and pull her a little bit closer. She turned and found his gaze was no longer on her, but had turned to focus entirely on Bubby. His green eyes were sharp and dangerous, and if looks could kill Bubby would be the one dead, not the pilot. Samantha knew that if she didn't say something to him, he was going to find himself in trouble fast. The muscles of his shoulder beneath her hand were so tightly wound they were trembling.

"It's okay Lancelot." She said softly, "I do believe you've given me a case of the vapors with such a scandalous dance."

Murdock really wanted to hit him. The monkey didn't get to use her title, her name, nothing. And if he leered at her like that again he'd find himself on the floor, just like the first time he'd ever seen him. When he heard her voice it cut through the red haze that had fell over his brain. He looked down and saw her sea foam gaze through the glasses looking up at him full of worry.

Okay, maybe he had pushed the levels of formality out the window by tango dancing with a princess. And yes, the monkey was pushing his luck…

"I do believe we have caused quite the spectacle." He told her at last, his voice now proper and pure BBC. "I do beg your forgiveness." Murdock released her at last and gave her a slight bow.

Sam glanced over and saw that Trey was pulling Bubby away telling him they had something else to do in another ward. The big man was still glaring at them. She turned back to Murdock. "Tis alright Sir Knight." She curtsied and let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. "You were simply carried away on the moment." Sam studied the pilots pale face and gave him a smile. "No harm done."

Murdock returned her tentative grin with one of his own. When she turned to talk to the Wizard who'd come up beside her, the grin fell away, his eyes following the form of the monkey as he walked down the hall. "Not yet anyway…" He muttered, his voice rough southern threat.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: Go see Scott Pilgrim. It will rule you. Uhm…that's all.**

**Authors Note: I've got another chapter in me before this weekend is over. Tasty angst is on the way.**

**Also, if you haven't seen the movie referenced in here (The Ghost and Mrs. Muir) then you need to. It's beautiful, lovely, and Rex Harrison is in fact a god. **

**Thanks to all my reviewers who seem to enjoy my take on our favorite pilot. I'm trying to keep a balance with him…which I know is ironic. But when his instincts get triggered I really believe that's when the solider part of his personality takes over. I see Murdock as having a lot of different guys within him who make up the whole of who he is. **

**He was always a little cracked and an adrenaline junkie. But I think he's had some awful things happen to him throughout his life and then in the military that has damaged him, cracking all those parts into pieces. That's why he can slip in and out of them so easy. They are all him but the real Murdock has to fight to get to the fore, and the real Murdock is a solider. And that strength of purpose is what keeps him functioning. That's why in the series and in the film the missions and the team are his focus. He's just as capable as any of them (when the explosions started after they got the plates and everyone was shooting, he was there firing alongside of them.) He's broken but he's still a solider at his core and a pilot forever. **

**When something or someone he loves is threatened he reacts. That part of him comes through the chaos that his fractured brain has become and he kicks ass. That's Murdock. That's why I love him. That's why Dwight Schultz is the man and why Sharlto Copley stole my heart by keeping him that way. Uhm…that's all :-) **

Samantha spent the rest of the day talking to Rory and generally trying to baby him which made the old guy grouchy but he put up with it since he loved the girl and he knew she'd been worried. He didn't need to be babied, something he pointed out to her a dozen times that day. Her response was usually to ignore him, or to say "Whatever."

Rory noticed that Murdock hovered around on the periphery of things, one eye always on Samantha. He was sitting at the card table and talking in another of his repertoire of accents while he was dealing out a poker game. This one the old vet thought was supposed to be French…he reminded him of Inspector Clouseau.

The couple of times that Sam had left the room he'd seen the pilot's eyes follow her out the door and then down the hall until she was out of sight. Murdock had started to fidget then. The nervous twitching got worse and worse until she came back, as though he was fighting an urge to go get her. The vet found this interesting, but he didn't call it out to her. She had enough to deal with.

Rory and Sam watched an old movie that Sam knew was going to make her cry before it was over. She loved Rex Harrison and The Ghost and Mrs. Muir was a favorite. But it never failed to make her bawl like a baby.

"She should have got an Exorcist." Rory said laughing, knowing it would goad her and not able to help himself.

"He loved her! I mean yeah he was a snarky old bastard, but aren't we all?" She gave him a pop on the arm.

"Some of us have earned the right to be snarky old bastards doll." He grinned at her.

As the movie continued and the ending grew closer Murdock chose that moment to finish out his poker game. If he'd been in Vegas he'd have made a killing. As it was he'd won over a half packet of Goldfish crackers, a piece of chalk, and a dog eared paperback of Valley of the Dolls. He didn't know what he'd do with that one. Pocketing his loot he headed over to the couch and vaulted over the back to land next to Sam.

"What are we watching?" He asked, popping a few Goldfish in his mouth and crunching noisily.

Rory answered as Sam was too busy mouthing the dialog. "I've started to call this stuff SamPorn."

Murdock's eyes bugged out of his head and he nearly choked on a cracker. "Wha….what?"

Rory laughed again. "She's addicted to these old movies. Especially with the tragic hero thing…I don't know. I've sat here and seen her watch Lolita, Cleopatra, and apparently she's in love with Doctor Doolittle now too. She's like some walking encyclopedia for brooding heroes. What was that last one you made me watch? The one that was a book too?"

"Jane Eyre, Orson Welles, Joan Fontaine." Sam replied not looking up.

"That's right, Orson Welles before he turned into the Planet." Rory shook his head grinning.

"Technically he was a planet eater named Unicron." Murdock said turning to focus on the movie.

Rory's mouth fell open. "Oh god I've got another one." He thought to himself.

"I don't think I've seen this. What's going on?" Murdock asked Sam in a semi whisper.

Sam leaned towards him, keeping her eyes on the small screen. "He's the ghost of a sea captain whose home Mrs. Muir has moved into. He's trying to scare her into leaving. "

"That's mean." He said, looking confused. Why would she be rooting for this guy?

"But he eventually realizes they are equals and he becomes friends with her. He actually falls in love with her." Sam told him, defending her favorite character of the film.

"Oh, well that's better." Murdock nodded in approval.

"But that's the problem. He loves her and realizes that if she stays at the house and lives only for him she's going to miss out on life because he's a ghost, he's already lived his. So he leaves her so she can be free to live the rest of her life as it should be. He can only offer her so much, not as much as a living man could." Samantha's voice was wistful.

Murdock didn't like the sound of that. For some reason, this story was making him uncomfortable and sad. He turned back to the screen and saw the tall bearded captain walking around a sitting room, a lovely woman with dark hair talking to him. "How does she know he couldn't make her happy?" He asked in a tiny voice.

"He doesn't give her the choice. He leaves her." Sam looked over and saw the pilot had a weird look on his face. She couldn't quite read it, so she continued with the story. "She forgets him."

"Oh…" Murdock felt a twinge somewhere.

"But she doesn't really…not completely." She told him, and for some reason felt the need to squeeze his hand. "She stays at the house because part of her still remembers him and was happy there for the rest of her life. When she dies, he comes back to her, and they are reunited forever. She's young again when they walk away."

"You just told him the whole movie Sam." Rory was watching the expressions pass on the pilots face and shook his head.

"Yeah well…it's sad." She turned back to Rory. "I wish someone had warned me about it before I saw it the first time." She stuck her tongue out at him.

"Mature." Rory commented and laughed some more.

Sam went back to watching the movie. Murdock felt slightly better about the captain's fate, but not really. He decided to go with it and watch and see himself how it played out. When the captain made his choice to leave and simply be a dream to the lady he felt that same twinge somewhere happen. He looked over and saw that Sam's lower lip was slightly trembling. That made the twinge happen again. Gosh had he pulled a muscle?

"God I hate this part." Sam said, taking a breath.

"But you know they are together at the end." Murdock said, trying to help her be happier about everything. In reality he didn't think this was quite fair to the captain. If he loved the lady why couldn't they be together? I mean sure he had some issues. He was haunted by ghosts...wait…no, he was the ghost doing the haunting. The pilot realized he was getting things confused again. He needed to focus on something else.

Maybe wonder why he was suddenly feeling this kinship to a fictional character. Lord knew it wasn't the first time for him. They even shared the same moniker of Captain, so that made it a little more relevant. But Murdock felt he knew what the salty old sea dog was feeling as he watched Mrs. Muir slowly slip out of reach.

"I know they are but…it's still sad." Samantha's head fell onto his shoulder and Murdock went stock still. "I know he was with her all those years and she knew he was there watching over her…somehow. But…" She wiped her eyes. She had enough to cry over in reality, she really was a glutton for punishment watching these movies. "I guess it makes me sad because if I was her and found a guy like that, ghost or not, I'd make sure he knew I loved him and I wouldn't make him change a thing or give up anything for me. It just isn't fair to the captain." She sighed and realized she'd probably over shared. "Sorry….TMI."

Rory watched the reaction of the would be knight. He figured Sam had no idea the guy was obviously, to use a term, nuts about her. Maybe even the pilot didn't realize it…but Rory could see it. He'd watch him close, because he wasn't about to have her be hurt because she trusted the wrong guy. Even though Rory knew the pilot was a hero, he was also in here for a reason. But right then, the pilot looked sort of scared and confused, and maybe a little embarrassed.

"Sam I think you are one of the last hopeless romantics." Rory said at last, chuckling.

"That would explain the lack of boyfriends in my life Rory. Thanks for reminding me." She lifted her head from the faded plaid of Murdock's robe and wiped her eyes.

"What about you Lancelot?" Rory glanced over at the pilot and he noticed that the younger mans eyes were a bit shiny. "I'll be damned," Rory thought, "He's actually choking up a bit too. God what have you saddled me with here?"

Murdock turned to look at the Wizard. "I…I don't have a boyfriend." He looked really confused.

"No…no…" Rory laughed good and long and Sam slapped his arm. "I mean are you a hopeless romantic like Sammy here?"

Murdock still looked a little out of sorts at the question. Sam was watching the movie again as the ending was coming and the masochist in her needed to see the now eternally young Mrs. Muir rise up to walk into eternity with her captain. The pilot pondered his answer as he watched her face. His princess looked ready to cry. The swirls of grey and blue and green that watched from behind the frames of her glasses were shining with tears. But as the ending played out before her he saw the corners of her lips turn up in a smile, even as a tear drop fell from her eye.

The overwhelming desire to wipe it away came over him so quickly he realized he'd already lifted his hand to do so before he stopped himself. Even though they had gone through some interesting times together, Murdock felt that the gesture was a little too personal. He was after all just a knight. Virtue and nobility…he was her defender…her friend. And she was a princess…

"I've been called hopeless before." Murdock said, letting his hand drop to his side, sighing.

"You're not alone there buddy." Rory grinned.

Sam's head fell back to the couch and she groaned. "Gah…why do I do this to myself again?" She asked the ceiling.

"Because you have issues." Rory told her, patting her on the arm.

"Thanks." She glanced at him from the corner of her eye. She turned to look at Murdock who was watching the credits roll by but seemed distracted. "You okay Lancelot?" She touched his arm and he turned to face her.

"I'm fine Guinevere…just…just a sad movie like you said." He gave her a tiny smile while inside that little ache was eating away at him. Had he suddenly gotten a tape worm from that awful food?

Samantha felt the urge to hug him which she resisted. She had no idea how he'd react first of all. And...well…she knew she was getting attached to her knight. What would happen if he got transferred? That thought entered her head and it felt like someone had stabbed her in the side. No more Lancelot. It was a very good possibility. And even though she had Rory…she liked her knight in tattered plaid. Getting more attached might not be the best thing. But it was hard when she was looking up into those forest green eyes of his and seeing that crooked smile.

Sam glanced at the TV and laughed softly. "Well this should make the two of you happy. Fire Birds is on next…which is so random I can't even begin to fathom who is programming this station."

"OOOH…" Rory let out a sound of glee. "Tommy Lee Jones…that man is a legend."

Murdock looked a bit more animated and turned back to the TV. "It's no Air Wolf, but it'll do."

"And I'll have Nic Cage for my eye candy." Sam grinned.

Murdock gave her another funny look. "Really? Nic Cage? Really?"

"Hey don't knock my boy." She told him.

"Brooding hero…remember?" Rory commented.

"Foster!" A voice called out and Sam winced. She turned to see Trey standing at the rec room door. "You've got a session with Doc Brown."

"Are you helping with the DeLorean?" Murdock asked.

Sam grinned at him despite the fact she wasn't looking forward to this. She hated talking to them because they never believed her at the beginning, thinking she was just being a paranoid delusional. So now she just told them what they wanted to hear. Figuring out what sounded the least amount of crazy was tiring.

"No…you've mistaken him for the far more interesting Doctor Brown." Sam stood up. "Enjoy the movie boys." She walked off and followed Trey down the hall.

Murdock watched her go and Rory watched him. That fidget was starting to come back, and the older man saw the worry and concern fill the pilot's eyes.

"She'll be okay. She's been seeing Doc Brown since she's been here. It's old hat now." Rory said.

"I…I…just…it's my job to keep her safe." Murdock turned around and looked morosely at the TV. His princess alone in a room with some head shrink doctor didn't leave him with a case of warm fuzzies. He couldn't protect her from here. And he really couldn't protect her when they got into her brain and started trying to change stuff around…especially when it was perfectly fine.

"I know kid. But don't worry about her in there. She's learned to play the game." Rory patted him on the shoulder. "She's smart."

Murdock played with the frayed end of his belt. "I know…" He needed to go raid his stash. He was dying for a candy fix. Licorice would be good. Whenever he got nervous Red Vines were his drug of choice. "I know she's smart."

But he'd seen her crack, even just briefly, but she had. And he'd been there to help her, because that was his job. Anybody would crack with what she'd gone through, and was still going through. Rory didn't know…but she'd trusted him enough to tell him all of it. Granted, he'd had to pry it out of her with a metaphorical crowbar, but she'd told him. He really wanted Red Vines.

The session with Doctor Brown had gone as well as the last two she'd had. She gave him textbook answers to his textbook questions. He'd written down notes while peering at her through his frameless lenses, resembling an older version of Stephen Colbert. She'd thought he was cute for an older guy, until she'd realized he was a sexist ass who never listened to her. He was the reason for the drugs she was being given. He was convinced she had some sort of incestuous relationship notion in her head for her brother too. And that just creeped her out.

So she went through the motions and went out of her way not to let the man touch her. He liked touching…a lot. Which Sam thought went against some sort of rule somewhere, but just like with Bubby…no one seemed to give a shit.

When the hour was over Samantha felt exhausted. Bay Ridge wore on a person, both physically and mentally. The mental part was the worst. Trey led her out of the office and she thought seriously about going to her room and lying down for a while. She'd been sleeping so much lately, even more than normal. Sam knew it was a sign of depression. But knowing what it was didn't change what it did. And it didn't give her a way out of it.

Samantha headed back towards the rec room, taking off her glasses and rubbing her eyes. When she came around the corner she found Murdock pacing in front of the doorway. He looked like he was eating something. She stopped and watched him. He reminded her of a scared rabbit chewing through a piece of lettuce or a carrot. Sam grinned and shook her head at the image that flashed in her mind.

"Hey Lancelot." She walked up to him and he stopped in mid-step and mid-chew.

"Guinevere, I was just…want some licorice?" He held out a package of red, thin string Red Vines.

Her mouth parted in surprise. "How the hell do you get this stuff in here?" She pulled a string of with a snap. She started chewing, smiling at the taste.

"Like I said, trade secret." He grinned at her relieved to see she was okay. He noticed she looked tired though, more so than before she'd gone back. He was losing her. She was losing her. "Rory was making comments about Sean Young in a flight suit. It was starting to get a little too…graphic. I think he might be in love with Tommy Lee Jones though. It's really confusing." He glanced behind him into the rec room.

Sam laughed. "Rory is his own special sort of animal. But he's never boring."

"Yeah, I've known lots of guys like that." He looked a little cocky as he said "I've been called that myself a time or two."

Samantha gave him a big smile. "You are in fact both special and never boring Lancelot."

Murdock offered her another piece of licorice. "Same to you princess." She took it and he watched as she wants again twirled it into her mouth. "You know…you eat that really…funny."

"Hey." She chewed as they walked back into the room. "Everyone eats Red Vines in their own way. I used to try and lasso my tongue with them. Be glad that stopped when I was like ten."

Murdock went quiet at the thoughts of her tongue, licorice and all points in between. Thankfully she didn't seem to notice.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: Nurp a durpa durp.**

**Authors Note: I know I promised this during the weekend but life, the universe, and everything got I the way. But here it is. We hit crisis mode and everything starts going badly for our heroes. Angst is tasty, tastes like shrimp sort of (see District 9 and tell me that's not true.) mwahaha mine is an evil laugh.**

**As I've said lots of times before…the more I like a character, the more they must suffer. I'm actually a nice person…don't judge me! **

**Reviews are love, and make me write faster. Holy crap we're near 80! FEED ME!**

**Chapter 11**

Rory, Samantha, and Murdock watched the ending of Fire Birds and by that time it was nearly dinner. This seemed to be the way it was at Bay Ridge: eat, TV, eat, more TV, session with your doctor, eat, TV and then bed. It was more like a prison than many wanted to admit but everyone knew.

It was pasta night, which was a daring sort of dish for the place to serve. Samantha thought it screamed the words "Food Fight" but it appeared they were safe for the time being. As she and Murdock sat down with Rory to dig in to the feast she nearly laughed out loud at the look on the pilots face. "What's wrong Lancelot? You look…dare I say it…scared?"

Murdock glanced up at her. "What is this?" He prodded the strange mound of overcooked noodles and whatever it was that they had used for marinara. It looked like ketchup's mutant brother.

"The rumor is spaghetti." Rory replied, looking down at the dubious mound on his own tray and the single piece of bread that was its side dish.

"This is a travesty. This is beyond a travesty, this is a tragedy." Murdock loved food. He loved it with the passion of a thousand fiery suns. And the one thing that really REALLY bothered him when it came to being locked up was the food. But this, it was as if they were going out of their way to piss in his cheerios. Or a better analogy would be take a dump in his pasta.

He twirled a drooping and dripping lump of the stuff onto his fork. "I don't think this has ever been at any time pasta, at least not in this universe. Maybe that freaky From Beyond universe where they have eyeballs that come out of your head and you have to eat people's brains through their eye socket. But not here."

Sam heard the clatter of many a fork on a tray at Murdock's description of where this dish may have come from. And she could see why…it did resemble the squiggly mass that one imagined a brain would look like if it was laying in front of them. "Murdock…" He looked up at her, wide eyed innocence. "You might want to keep your voice down when discussing the eating habits of a Lovecraft character."

"At least someone is eating…" He grumbled, picking up the piece of bread and taking a bite.

Samantha had to agree. She wasn't going to dare the kitchen gods on their latest creation. She instead ate her slice of bread and drank her milk. Rory on the other hand called them both pussies and inhaled his with the gusto only a man who'd dealt with army rations and eating rat on occasion could. He even ate Murdock's serving as well as Sam's.

Murdock shook his head. He'd eaten some awful stuff in his time when he had to. But watching Rory he wondered just how high a voltage that hit him with.

"So what's the after party tonight kids?" Rory asked daintily dabbing at his lips with a napkin. They were stained a bright red that would put a number of drag queens to shame Samantha thought.

"Hmmm…well…we could play poker." Murdock offered.

Both Samantha and Rory shook their heads. They'd seen him take the table for all they were worth earlier that day. He pouted at their unison answer of no.

"I guess it's another TV party then." Rory stood up. "I'm thinking South Pacific is on tonight."

Sam shrugged. "I'm game, what about you Lancelot?"

"I can handle show tunes tonight. I think…but I'll need chocolate first. And lots of it." Murdock replied.

They all stood up. "Well fine then, give me your trays. Flyboy here can go raid his magical stash of sugar. Sam, you go nab our spots before Dewey decides it's a Rachel Ray a thon night."

Sam laughed. "Yes sir." She saluted and headed off to the rec room.

Sam walk back was strangely light hearted. Having Rory and Murdock together was helping her cope and she was actually…dare she even think it…having fun. She had a sneaking sensation that Murdock might even break out into song during South Pacific, and that would be entertaining as all hell. She wondered if he could sing well. The way he could control his voice with all the accents she figured he probably could. The thought made a little flutter happen in her stomach. She quickly stopped the train of thought before she started dressing him in her mind's eye with a cape and a white half mask. "Jesus I really do have issues." She muttered to herself.

Samantha slipped into the rec room and saw that she'd timed it just right for the nightly pill disbursement. "Ugh…" She scooted around Trey who'd gotten stuck with the task again and made her way to the couch nearest the TV.

No one was sitting there right then, but someone had flipped the station to a local one. Sam flopped down on the couch and decided to watch the news and wait for the guys since she had no idea what station South Pacific was actually on.

She glanced over at the ping pong table where Brucie and Greg were playing, both of them sweating and red faced. They were battling like gladiators or world class Wimbledon tennis aces. Sam muffled a giggle as she pictured Brucie in a Serena Williams skort dress.

"In local news, a sad day as business man Samuel Foster passed away this morning after a long illness."

It didn't register at first, at least not right away. Sam only half heard the voice of the anchor. But part of her had to have realized the words, what they meant. It was as if in slow motion when her head turned back to the TV.

"Foster!" Trey's voice meshed with the monotone of the anchor as he called for her to come take her meds. She paid him no mind, her eyes drawn like a magnet to the screen, her brows furrowing behind her glasses in confusion. No, she didn't hear this….she didn't hear this.

"Samuel Foster was a prominent figure in business as well as the community. Foster Delivery grew from a small operation to a national shipping giant. Foster is survived by his wife and two children…"

The voice faded in Sam's mind as she started mouthing the word "No." silently…then growing to a whisper. She didn't hear Trey's third yelling of her name or see the way his eyes narrowed at her. He thought she was ignoring him, not realizing that her world was imploding.

Her father…her father was gone and she'd not gotten to say goodbye. She was stuck here, he didn't even know…didn't know…she was stuck here and Stewart got to be with him. Her father…daddy…. Tears were running down her face now, and she couldn't even feel them. She was numb, but it hurt. Everything hurt so bad. Sam couldn't breathe. She needed to though. She needed to breathe because she had to scream, she had to scream so he could hear her wherever he was and know.

"Foster!" Trey called over again, having had enough. He sighed and called Larry over to hold the tray of meds. "I'm going to go get her. Watch these."

As the orderly headed over Rory stopped at the door and started heading towards the couch. He saw Sam was already there, but when he heard what was on the TV he nearly tripped over his own feet. "Oh shit…" He breathed the words.

"Foster I told you to get your butt over here and take your meds." Trey's hand came down on her shoulder and Sam's fist connected with his jaw hard. The big man actually went down like a bag of rocks. And Sam started screaming.

"He's gone you bastard! He's gone and I wasn't there! He's gone and I was here! I'm here!" Her voice was hoarse, cracking…just like she was. The sobs were full and wracking her chest like punches from a fist. But she kept yelling. She pushed over the TV and sparks flew.

It was at that moment Larry had called over for back up to help Trey who was shaking his head trying to stand. Bubby came in followed by another man.

Rory didn't know what to do. He was frozen to the spot as he watched the poor girl lose herself to sadness and despair, something he recognized all too well. He heard the same wail in her voice that he'd heard in his dreams most nights. When the orderlies pushed past him he came back to himself, but it was too late by then, too late to help her or to stop the inevitable outcome.

Bubby leered at her. "Alrighty princess. You've been a bad one."

She threw another punch, hitting his still bruised cheek with her fist in a lucky glancing blow. Sam wanted to fight. She wanted to do something other than hurt. She couldn't think anymore past that. Because right then she wanted to die as the realization she never would get to talk to or see her father again hit her. She wouldn't even get to go to the funeral. Her brother had taken everything. She had nothing. Nothing but this place, and these monkeys, who were surrounding her, taunting her. So she struck out, managing to hit another one.

Bubby held his face, tasting blood in his mouth for the second time in nearly as many days. He was really tired of that and of these freaks thinking they could get away with it. Especially this one. This little bitch was a pain in his ass, along with her new boyfriend the army loony. He was tired of dealing with them. He moved in a circle around her, while Trey who had gotten to his feet, got ready with the syringe and the restraints.

While Larry distracted her Bubby pounced, his arms grasping hold of her like a vice while she struggled crazily in his grasp. He knocked her head into the tiled floor with more force than necessary and she was dazed. Yanking her arms back hard, he yelled at Trey to tranq her.

Murdock walked through the door and saw her in the monkey's clutches. She was fighting them and they were winning. She was in trouble and he moved without thinking about anything else. "Samantha…" He growled her name and ran, ready to take them all on, ready to rip Bubby's arm off and beat him with it. Before he could get there Rory tackled him down, pulling him out into the hallway. The orderlies were too busy with her to notice them.

Murdock struggled just as hard as she was. But Rory held firm, the kid would get himself put in jail. He could tell by the look in his eyes. He'd wind up killing one of those orderlies and that wouldn't do either him or Sam a bit of help.

"Let me go!" The pilot snarled. "She needs me!" He elbowed Rory hard in the ribs, but the old vet was used to that move. And even though he had the wind knocked out of him, he held firm.

"There's too many of them." He struggled some more. "You get locked up you'll not do her any good." Rory hoped it would get through to him. He didn't know how long he could hold him back.

The needle plunged into her arm and Sam felt the world start turning grey. She thought she heard her name, someone calling to her through the haze. Who was it? It was familiar. More tears, she felt them on her cheeks. Her glasses had fallen off when Bubby pushed her down. Everything was blurry…everything felt wrong. She looked towards the sound of the voice, Bubby's weight pushing all the breath from her. Her arms were on fire where he had them pulled back so tight they felt like they would pop out of the sockets. She could hear her name, but it sounded far away…so far away…nearly gone. Everything was gone…she closed her eyes and welcomed the black.

The orderlies lifted her up. Larry took her arms and Trey her legs. Bubby rubbed his jaw and followed along. Everyone else in the room just stared, some shaking, other cursing at the ruin of the television. Outside in the hallway Murdock had stopped struggling and Rory had let him up. His words had finally gotten through and the younger man slumped against the wall as he watched them carry her out. Rory kept a hand on his shoulder just in case.

"Sam…" The pilot's green eyes were lost as they watched his princess be taken away from him. He'd failed her. He'd not been there when she needed him, not quick enough…not strong enough. Some knight…

"Son there was nothing you could do." Rory told him gently. "She was going to break…you couldn't stop it. She just found out her dad passed away, and she had to find it out from the news."

"Her father?" Murdock whispered. Oh lord in heaven…no wonder…

"Yeah. You can't blame yourself. I know you want to be her champion, but you can't fight something like that." The Wizard said and Murdock realized he was right when he'd guessed what the man was. He was wise and strong just like a Wizard should be. It still didn't make it hurt less, seeing her tears and hearing her cries, and not being able to stop them. He'd not felt something so painful since…well…the desert.

"I needed…to be there. It's my duty." The pilot looked at him, and Rory saw the burning determination in his gaze. He knew that Sam would be safer with this man than any of the so called care givers in Bay Ridge, probably safer with him than just about anywhere or anyone else in the world.

Rory squeezed his shoulder wincing just a bit at his sore rib. The kid was a scraper "I know Ranger. But you'd not have done her any good locked up in a room down the hall from her doped out of your mind…or worse. She's gonna need you strong and clear headed."

Murdock didn't know how clear headed he could stay, but he'd try his hardest for her. He turned back towards where they had taken Sam. No doubt to the room they'd placed him in when he'd arrived, the white room. She'd not like that, way too boring and plain. He figured his princess liked color or at least more than one shade all over the place.

"I need to get her out of here." He said softly. With her dad gone, her brother had nothing left to lose. Murdock had a feeling that if someone was going to come for her, it would be now. And she was more vulnerable than ever locked in that room.

Rory nodded. "Yeah kid, I think you do. But it won't be tonight and it probably won't be tomorrow. " He sighed. "If I know the routine, and god knows I've had it done on me enough times…they'll have her on watch for 48 hours. She'll be pumped full of sedation and supervised. They really don't like it when you punch them. And she decked at least two of those monkeys."

Murdock raised a brow at that. His princess had punched two of them? He smiled just a bit. "She's a fighter."

"She is." Rory smiled sadly. "But she's gonna need help for this battle."

Murdock and Rory shuffled into the rec room where the TV had been swept up and tossed away. Murdock saw something near the couch and reached down, picking it up. It was Samantha's glasses, slightly scratched but unbroken. His face tensed and that now familiar twinge hit his middle again. He slipped them into his pocket as he'd done before, keeping them safe for her.

The two soldiers played some gin but neither of them were really in the mood for it. After another hour they each said they were going to bed.

A short time later the pilot was lying on the thin mattress in his room and staring up at the ceiling. He couldn't sleep if his life depended on it. So pulling on his faded robe he opened his door and checked the hallway. It was all clear. He headed down towards the white room.

Of course the door was locked, and he couldn't see her through the metal that separated them. But he knew she was in there. Murdock looked around one more time. It was late, he had no doubt they'd not head down here tonight figuring she was completely zonked out and not a threat. Threat…he glowered down towards where the orderlies and nurses station would be. He knew which direction a threat would come alright.

Murdock slid down the wall and sat on the floor near the doorframe. He pulled out a Hershey's Kiss from his pocket, holding it by the little flag and letting it twirl back and forth, the foil catching what little light was there. He sighed, unwrapped it, and tossed it into his mouth. He leaned his head back against the wall and started his vigil, keeping watch over his sleeping princess.


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: Dirka durka dirka.**

**Authors Note: Okay so I snuck in a couple more D9 references. I can't help it. There's also another Sharlto specific thingy towards the end. I'm sure you'll recognize it. **

**The angst flows freely this chapter. I 3 you all that reviewed so far and have been following this story and favorited it. Murdock and I thank you (waves arm of action figure) ****We also ask for reviews cause they are our crack. **

**Chapter 12**

Murdock's record for going without sleep was five days. He was able to function well even on that fifth day with very little in the way of hallucinations. He might talk to himself more than normal, but he was still impressively functional. At least he thought so. Truth be told, having been tortured for a week straight through made just not sleeping a breeze. In fact, it cut down on the frequency of the nightmares the torture had inspired his brain to cook up some nights when it was wanting to be a real bastard.

Needless to say two days was nothing to him. During the day he wandered around, watching the hallway, keeping an ear out for any news. Rory would tell him not to worry, but Rory didn't know what Murdock did. The following night, as he had the night before, he snuck out, avoided the monkeys and guarded the door to Samantha's room. He would talk to her through the door sometimes, even though he realized there was little chance she could hear him even if he didn't have to whisper so the monkeys wouldn't know he was there.

He'd tell her about his time in the army, the good parts at least. Murdock described his first time flying and how it had been the most amazing thing he'd ever experienced. And then he told her how much fun it would be when they went up in a plane together. She'd not have to worry about a thing. She never needed to worry about anything cause he'd not let anything hurt her, just like right now…nothing and no one would get past him.

The next day he sat down opposite the Wizard and poked his spoon into the oatmeal they were trying to pass off as breakfast. He missed his princess and he wanted her out of the clutches of the monkeys. She shouldn't be alone like she was. Not with what happened. Murdock knew all about losing a parent.

"How you doing kid?" Rory asked, knowing the answer already.

Murdock grunted, impaled the oatmeal with the spoon, and was not surprised when it stuck straight up unmoving. He shoved the tray away and sighed. "I need to see her." He said staring at the wall. "They should let her out today right?" He looked hopefully towards Rory.

Rory looked away. He'd been snooping himself since he was worried about Sam. He had a bit of an in with Trey and Larry. Having been there longer than Murdock he knew how to talk to them. What he'd heard wasn't good. "They're keeping her under observation longer than normal kid." He said softly. "She's not doing well."

Murdock's face paled. "What do you mean?"

Rory sighed and took a drink of his fake coffee. "They've got her on a suicide watch son. She's in a bad way."

If possible his face grew paler. Murdock's green eyes were stricken. "She wouldn't…" He said, not believing it. "She…she wouldn't do something like that…not ever." He repeated it over and over in his head. His princess wouldn't give up like that. She was strong. She was a fighter.

Rory shook his head, his expression sad but knowing. "Son, when the dark takes you, you can't always fight it back." He sighed again. "You've only known Sam for a few days. I've known her a bit longer. I've seen the dark creeping in. And this, this was like a full on eclipse for her. I know she's not told me the whole story, I'm not an idiot. But just what I do know is enough for most people to want to give up."

Murdock still wouldn't believe it. Not his princess. "Sir, I can tell you this much. I may not have known her as long as you…but I know her." His words were hushed but they were steely with his belief in them. "Samantha wouldn't kill herself."

Rory stared back into the younger mans eyes and saw that same belief reflected in their green depths. He wanted to believe it too, but he'd had his own battles with the dark and he'd nearly lost all of them. He knew how powerful it was, and how tempting it was to let it take over. "I want to believe you Captain. I really do." Rory drank down the last of his coffee. "But I know from experience how it can get."

Murdock felt helpless, and that was something he really hated. He needed to do something…he needed to see her, actually see her and talk to her. He couldn't help her fight the monsters if he didn't know how big they were. He wanted to punch the wall, but that wouldn't do any good either. He wanted to throw the gunk they called oatmeal into the floor but that would just get him put into another room and locked down like she was.

"I just need to see her." He said softly, shoulders slumping. "I just need to see her, even for just a little bit." His gaze fell to the floor.

Rory looked thoughtful. Maybe seeing her knight would cheer her up some. He doubted it could actually hurt. "I might have an idea…" He said, voice low so no one could hear them.

Murdock looked up at the Wizard. "Are we going to break into Mordor?"

Rory looked confused and then shook his head. "I have no idea what you're talking about…but listen."

Trey glanced around nervously. It was just after 8 o'clock at night and most everything was quiet. Except his nerves which were on edge. Rory and Murdock slipped round the corner right on time, but he still jumped. "Jesus, don't ninja on me like that man." He told the older vet who grinned.

"Calm down." Rory patted the orderlies shoulder. He glanced over at Murdock who looked ready to hop out of his own skin. "You too," He told the pilot. "Being all jittery won't help her."

Murdock merely nodded, his eyes staring at the door that had kept him from his princess for the past three days.

Trey looked as nervous as the pilot. "Okay, here's the deal. I'm gonna let him in there. He's got fifteen minutes. If he gets caught I ain't responsible."

"Yes I know. And you'll get those bootlegged Dead concerts just like I told you." Rory repeated the deal for the hundredth time.

The orderly's secret of being a Dead Head was little known, except with Rory. Trey's dark eyes glanced back down the hallway. He'd wanted to hear those live recordings ever since Rory had told him that he had them stored at the unit that held all of his stuff. It was the one thing the guy could offer him to get him to risk his job for.

The orderly took a deep breath and motioned for Murdock to follow him. They headed down the hallway to the room, Rory staying behind just to be an extra set of eyes in case someone came along. When the two of them arrived at the door, the orderly turned to the pilot and gave him a stare. "Now listen. She's been medicated. No funny business with her or I'll beat your ass."

Murdock looked at him strangely until it dawned on him what the monkey was saying. His face grew hard. "You even think let alone say I'd do something like that and I'll…"

"Okay okay." Trey remembered when the guy was brought in. He knew what he could do. "I don't want the gal hurt, and I shouldn't even be doing this…but you're friends I guess…according to the old man. And Jerry's my boy…so…" Trey knew he was rationalizing something that he shouldn't be doing in the first place. "Ugh…just go on but don't expect her to be real talkative or anything." He unlocked the door and opened it quietly. "Fifteen minutes."

Murdock gave him one last glare checked his watch, and then slipped into the room. The lights in there were dim. There was no window of course. The bed was towards the middle and there stood his old enemy the IV pole. Of course they'd have her hooked up to a drip, feeding her meds to keep her "calm."

He was suddenly nervous. She wasn't moving much. He could just make out her chest rising and falling as she was breathing. Murdock hesitantly walked over, taking off his cap and shoving it in the pocket of his robe. He stood beside the bed and saw she was asleep. His eyes tensed in the corners as he saw her face.

Sam was paler than he'd ever seen her, nearly as white as the sheets that she lay on. There were slight red streaks near her eyes…tear tracks he realized. But the thing that made his fingers curl up into fists was the bruise, purple and ugly to the side of her forehead. He knew it had happened while that ape had held her down. And the ape had probably enjoyed it. His teeth stared grinding, and he knew he had to get calm. Rory had warned him he couldn't be jittery…or angry…or want to rip out the ape's windpipe and make him eat it…

Murdock took a breath and let it out his nose slowly. Then he lifted his fingers and touched her hair just near the bruise. "I'm sorry…" He said softly. "I…I'm not a very good knight…" He trailed his fingers down her cheek, noticing how chilly her skin was. She had to be cold. He looked around and saw a stand that held blankets and towels and an extra pillow. He went over and grabbed another blanket off it then quickly tucked it in around her, carefully avoiding the IV in her arm.

He took her hand in his. "I'm sorry Samantha…so sorry." He whispered, not even sure she could hear him. He noticed the restraints on her wrists, and he knew there were probably two more on her ankles. Murdock glared at the damned things. He could just make out the red raw marks on her skin where she'd struggled against them. She was a fighter…he knew she was.

The pilot felt her fingers twitch in his grasp and he nearly jumped in response. His eyes quickly glanced up to her face. Her eyes fluttered open. They were glazed and the pupils huge, the dark had swallowed up the sea green color he liked so much. When they focused on him he felt the world stop.

"Lancelot…" Her voice was hoarse…dry. It was almost a question, as though she didn't quite believe he was real.

"Hi princess…" he squeezed her hand gently. "I fought my way here to the castle, beyond the goblin city."

She nearly smiled. He saw it, the barest ghost of a smile on her lips. But it died nearly as quickly as it came. Reality returned too fast and the sadness filled her eyes even through the haze of the meds. He saw the first tear flow down her cheek, following the trail the others had taken. "The king is dead…" Her voice cracked then. "And I wasn't there…"

What could he say to her? He knew the pain of losing his own mother and what it had put him through. "I know it hurts baby…" He told her, his voice slipping into the soft southern of his own drawl. He knelt onto his knees, bringing his face level with hers. His fingers lifted up and he smoothed her hair, something he remembered his mother having done when he was very young. "I know it hurts so much."

She sobbed, the tears coming in earnest now. "I let him down…I let him down…I should have been there." Samantha turned away from him, reality and the fantasy the meds had her believing meshing together with the pain. Her champion was trying to help her, the miserable failure of a princess who had let the king die. The traitorous prince won the kingdom…and she was in exile not even able to say goodbye.

"You didn't let him down Samantha. You've been fighting all the way. I've seen you." Murdock squeezed her hand, the fingers of his right slipping down to her chin and turning her to face him. She looked so fragile, so broken. He had no business trying to mend anyone. But he had to try. Because the thought of not seeing those sea green eyes anymore, of that laugh never being heard again…it made something inside him ache horribly.

"You're a fighter Samantha, and you have to keep fighting…" His thumb wiped away another tear as he gazed at her, eyes pleading with her to hang on because he needed her to. "Don't give up…your dad wouldn't want you to…I know he wouldn't."

She tried to pull away, another sob choking her. "I couldn't stop him. And…I'm here…He took it all…everything…" She tried to breathe but she couldn't, it all hurt, even breathing. "I've got nothing left. I'm so tired…I don't…I don't want this anymore…I just want it to stop."

Murdock shook his head, the memories of the men and their knives coming back to him. He'd said these same words to the empty walls of his prison cell. He knew that pain, physically and mentally, when death seemed like such a welcome visitor. But the fighter in him, the solider…the one who had earned the tattoo that he bore on his arm, wouldn't let him do it. And that soldier wasn't going to let her do it either.

He turned her face back to his, this time holding her face between his hands, trapping her gaze. "I know you're tired Samantha. I know…it hurts like someone had torn something out of you that you'll never get back. But you have to fight, you have to make it because you're dad was worth it. You're worth it. You've got to make it so you can make the man responsible for this pay. And I promise you he will, cause I'll help you." His green eyes burned into hers, his thumbs traced her cheeks, feeling the damp of her tears. It made him wish for five minutes alone with her brother and a sharpened number two pencil.

"I'm not…worth it…I couldn't stop him…I want to di…" Sam started to say and he hushed her.

"No…no don't you dare." His expression grew harder, his eyes narrowing. "Don't you dare give up on me. I'm not giving up on you." Murdock's voice softened then as he saw her tremble. "I promise you Samantha…I promise I'll get us out of here and I'll help you stop him." He brushed her hair from her forehead, swallowing the tightness away from his throat. "But you have to promise me you'll…you'll not go anywhere without me…"

Samantha stared up at him, at the knight who was begging her not to leave him behind. Something in his moss colored eyes made her believe him. His voice felt truer than any other she'd heard in so long. He wouldn't give up on her, he'd get her free from this place full of monsters and help her stop the one who'd put her here and had cost her goodbye. All she had to do was believe him, trust him, and wait for him.

She could be strong enough for that couldn't she? She could be that strong for her father because he deserved to have all he'd worked for be clean of the dirt and disease her brother had brought to it. His memory was more than worth that. He was worth that fight and so was the man in front of her.

"Just please promise me Samantha…" He said again, "just don't…leave…without me." Murdock watched the emotions cross her face. Her eyes seemed to clear just a little. He pushed down his anxiety. He couldn't walk out of this room with her like this. He'd never leave her side until he heard her promise she wouldn't do something to herself…because then he'd just have to hunt down her brother on his own…and that wouldn't end with a nice fuzzy jail sentence.

Samantha felt like she was crawling out of a very deep hole, something still holding onto her very tenacious and trying to drag her back down. But she had to hold on…she thought of her father's smiling face and strong voice, before the cancer had stolen it from him and then stolen him from her. She was Samuel Foster's daughter, she could do this, she could fight because so had he.

Her sea green eyes met Murdock's, and Sam saw that same strength reflected there. She felt his calloused fingers against her skin, wiping away the sadness. "I promise…" Her voice was so low; it was as thin as a whisper.

But the pilot heard it. Murdock closed his eyes in relief and leaned his forehead against hers. "Thank you…" He said softly. He leaned back and gave her a very slight smile. "No take backs on that." He told her.

"I promise…" She said again as whatever was holding on to her lost its grip and fell back into the hole. "I…I'll fight…" Sam took an unsteady breath. "You'll help me?" She asked him, her voice tiny in the dim of the room.

"I'm your knight princess." Murdock let his fingers caress her cheek, noticing the chill was leaving her skin. "I'll ride into battle right next to you. I'm Gabrielle to your Xena…" He paused, realizing that wasn't quite the best scenario, at least in relation to him. When he stopped mid sentence he saw that phantom smile cross her lips again. "Stop picturing me in a short skirt..." He pouted at her and the smile came to life a bit more.

Murdock at that moment had the presence of mind to notice his watch…which he immediately regretted. He had another two minutes before he was supposed to leave, and he didn't want to by any stretch of the imagination. He'd just got her smile back.

"I have to go for a little bit." He said, his eyes staring at the sheet as he took hold of her hand again. Her fingers tightened around his immediately.

"No don't leave." She begged him. Sam didn't want to be alone in there anymore.

The twinge came back doubled in strength. Murdock winced. "I have to. If they find me in here we'll both be in trouble…or more than we already are." He squeezed her fingers. "I'll be back though. I'll be just outside, that's another promise."

Samantha glanced away, doubtful. He tugged on her hand. "Guard duty is part of the job description." Murdock gave her a crooked smile when she looked back at him. She sighed but squeezed his hand in resignation.

He had about another minute before Trey would open the door. "Oh hey…" He let go of her hand and reached into his pocket. "I brought you something." He dangled another silver wrapped chocolate in front of her.

Her lips turned up at the corners. "Sweetie man…with the magic pockets." She actually laughed a small giggle. The drugs were kicking in again or maybe this was just how he made her act.

"Just deep ones." He told her and unwrapped the Hershey's Kiss. "Okay, open up buttercup."

Sam dutifully parted her lips and Murdock placed the chocolate in her mouth. Her eyes closed and she chewed blissfully for a few seconds. He smiled, his fingers grazing her chin. Chocolate always helped. He leaned down and lightly brushed his lips against her temple where the bruise was. "Get some rest baby. You're champions got some planning to do." He told her.

"I think you'd look hot in a short skirt." She mumbled drowsily.

Murdock stood up shaking his head and in a lisping Swedish accent stated. "Oh you know it…but I'm all out of the Nair. Not so much with the Wookie you know? But the pink gun looks marvelous paired with a mini."

She giggled again then was asleep a second later. Murdock heard the key turning in the lock. He sighed, the smile dropping from his face as he readied himself to leave. Trey whispered into the room "Times up…come on man."

With one last look at his sleeping princess Murdock pulled his cap out of his pocket, set it on his head, and followed the monkey out of the room.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: Nope, not saying a word. You already know what I own.**

**Authors Note: I think this is the longest one yet. Booya. Also, yes feel free to imagine the pretty that is Milo Ventimiglia as Tommy, cause that's what I did. I want him to play a bad guy…a real bad guy. So now he is…IN MY BRAIN! Mwahahaha.**

**Feed me crack…cause this one ends on a cliffy. (more evil laughter.) More crack (aka reviews) the quicker I write. Cause drugs mean faster, or something.**

**Chapter 13**

Tom Dinello wasn't a patient man. That was why his Uncle Phil had met with such a heartbreaking accident a few years back clearing the way for Tommy Boy to take the reigns of the family. He understood Stewart Foster a little better than most thanks to this desire to be in charge of something greater than himself. What he didn't understand was Foster's idiocy in regards to his sister.

When he'd discovered what Stewart had been hiding behind his back; that his sister had found out about their joint operation, he'd been more than a little pissed. It was bad enough it had caused him to spill an entire glass of very expensive red wine on his newest pair of alligator boots. But to know that he'd made the entire situation more complicated by having her committed; that was the icing on the cake.

As his two boys held Stewart by the arms, Tommy hit him one more time in the stomach for good measure. He gestured for the boys to let him go and the little fucker fell to the floor gasping.

Tommy smoothed back his slightly mussed hair and shook himself free of the anger. He'd been told by a therapist that his anger was going to get the best of him if he wasn't careful…so he kept his involvement in doling out punishment to a minimum. But he felt it needed his special touch in this case, especially since he was the mastermind behind bringing Stewart in. Even Tommy Boy Dinello had to answer to someone, so before that happened he was going to fix this issue.

Tommy rolled the sleeves back down in place on his black silk shirt, buttoned the cuffs, then leaned down towards the wheezing Stewart. "Stewie, you know better than to try and hide shit from me." Tommy's perfectly arched black brows were narrowed over his equally dark eyes. He shook his head at the man on the floor. "I always find out. And this was a biggie. You know that don't you?"

Stewart shook his head. "I'm….sorry Tommy. I…she's my sister man…"

Tommy nodded. He knew about family. And even if he had killed his uncle, the mean fucker deserved it. Sisters were different. They were chicks first of all…and Tommy didn't like offing women. He was raised old school in that regard. "I know she's your sister you dumb ass." He smacked the back of Stewart's head. "You should have come to me with this sooner, not made up some stupid idea of your own."

Tommy stood up and motioned for his boys to help Stewart up too. They had to half way support him as he was still trying to double over in pain. Tommy had been told before he looked like a younger, less dopey Sylvester Stallone. He'd liked that growing up, so he'd taken up boxing as a way to work out. It also helped when he had to teach someone a lesson.

The mobster sighed heavily. "So now this is going to be harder. We don't have a choice now. She's gotta be taken care of. So lucky for you I've already got that set in motion."

Stewart looked up with large eyes. "What?"

Tommy turned around and smiled, looking like a tanned shark, his teeth very white due to lots of bleaching. "I found a guy on the inside of the loony bin just last night. Didn't take a lot of convincing, seems he doesn't like your sister very much but boy does he like money. Cheap though…but as long as the job gets done…"

Stewart looked horrified, or it might have been a need to vomit. Tommy walked over and clapped him on the shoulder, but stood far enough away there would be no risk to his new boots in case he did get sick. "No worries Stewie, it'll be quick. We gave him the stuff we use to make it look like a heart attack. I'm not a complete dick. I knew you'd want it to be as painless as possible."

"But…she's…" Stewart seemed to realize that he had no choice in this. There was nothing he could do, the wheels had been set in motion long before. He hung his head in defeat. "It'll be quick?" He asked holding his possibly broken ribs.

Tommy nodded, giving him another grin. "I trust this guy Buddy…or is it Bubby…whatever…" He patted him on the back. "It's close enough and sounds friendly doesn't it? Now you'd better go get yourself looked over, I've been hitting the bag pretty hard lately…don't know my own strength."

Before the boys let him go though, Tommy grabbed hold of his chin and glared into his face. "Don't hide nothing else from me, that's not how it works. And I won't be nearly as nice next time. You've still got a mom…" Then he let go of his face and gave him a hug. "You're my boy Stewie. My Santa, so don't let anymore of your reindeer take a dump on my roof." Tommy let him go and headed out the door of the Foster Delivery shipping depot followed by his boys who let Stewart fall to a crumpled heap on the dusty floor without a backwards glance.

****

Bubby had bills, lots of bills. And an ex-wife with a kid she said was his, but he had little faith in that idea. So when the guy in the suit and the expensive car had waited for him in the parking lot of Piggly Wiggly saying he'd followed him from his job, he'd been more worried the guy was some sort of court document server and not a guy with a job offer.

He'd taken him to a bar down the street, bought him a double of Makers Mark and gave him an offer. Bubby hadn't even hesitated. Ten grand to off that bitch? What was there to think about? He had two days to get the job done. Bubby knew exactly what he'd do. She was still in observation and tied to the bed. It was almost too easy. Maybe there was a god.

He pocketed the small box holding the syringe that was filled with a drug whose name he couldn't even pronounce and then took the envelope holding twenty five hundred bucks of the down payment. He'd get the rest as soon as the job was complete.

He'd never killed anybody before…at least on purpose. There had been that one patient a couple of years back that had been putting up a fight against him and another orderly. He'd slammed the guys head into a point in the wall in the struggle. That had been easy to cover up. The guy had slipped on his own….wet hallway…things happen. Unfortunately for the custodial staff that one had come down on them since they hadn't put up a wet floor sign. Ooopsie.

Bubby had a plan, and so as he headed to work in his faded, worn scrubs he had a smile on his face. It was the type that would have given anybody who saw it the creeps.

****

It was now four days without sleep and Murdock was wide awake as he and Rory played the umpteenth game of poker. The previous night he'd nearly been caught outside Samantha's door. He'd thankfully jumped into one of the laundry carts when the monkeys had shown up. Not so thankful was the fact it had been a dirty laundry cart. And so Murdock had spent a good hour and a half in the shower that morning scrubbing until his skin had turned a shocking shade of pink.

"You're eyes are bloodshot kid." Rory pointed out as he lay down a full house on the table top.

Murdock sighed. He had to be getting tired if he was losing like this. He tossed his cards on the table. "Thanks." He said, rubbing said eyes. He could sleep soon though. Murdock had a plan…and it was a good thing too since his cousin Roscoe had called earlier that day.

He'd promised his princess he'd get her out of there, and he was going to keep that promise. And so far she'd kept hers too. She was still in the white room, but she was still alive and kicking. And now after his talk with "Roscoe" he knew that he'd be getting her out of the monkey's clutches far quicker than first thought.

"Well I have some news that might cheer you up son." Rory said gathering up the cards and shuffling them with the skill of a Las Vegas dealer. "Word on the street is your princess is going to be let out into world tomorrow."

Murdock looked up and a large grin spread across his face. "Really?"

"Yep…seems like her recovery took a turn for the better for some mysterious reason." Rory looked up at the younger man and gave him a smile and a wink. "You've got a way with the ladies I guess Lancelot."

Murdock actually blushed and quickly felt like an idiot for it. "I…I just talked to her..." He stammered.

"I know kid I know." Rory laughed. "You were there when she needed you the most Captain, just remember that."

Murdock nodded, still looking at the floor and smiling. Well, unfortunately tomorrow would be too late. He'd still need some daring heroics to get the room unlocked as Face would be there that night to break him out. Murdock hadn't had a chance to give Face the heads up on the extra passenger that would be coming along. Hopefully the vehicle of choice wouldn't be a motorcycle.

At that thought Murdock looked up at Rory. The Wizard had helped them a lot, and he suddenly felt guilty at never thinking of asking him if he wanted to come too. "Sir…I…I have something to tell you." Murdock whispered.

Rory looked confused for a moment. "Okay, what is it kid?"

****

Breaking Murdock out of loony bins had become old hat for Templeton "Face" Peck. For some reason it always seemed to fall on him. No doubt because of his ability to charm and talk his way through nearly anything. That first time, with the bursting through the wall of the place was definitely memorable. But now, they needed to be a bit more cautious…and less property damage would always be nice.

So it was that late that night, Face drove through the gate at the wheel of Bay Ridge's laundry service truck. The actual driver was tied up in the back none too happy with the situation. Face wasn't too happy either, the guy was nearly a foot shorter than he was so the uniform was riding up his crotch and felt like it was going to slice him in half. But it wasn't so noticeable as to be a problem; at least to the people not wearing it.

Once he was parked at the service entrance, Face jumped out of the truck and tried to discreetly fix the major wedgie he was receiving. Then he headed over to the door and hit the button of the intercom.

After he was buzzed in he only had one moment that caused him a scare. The night shift nurse asked what had happened to Phil, the regular guy. He'd grinned at her and said he'd gotten a case of food poisoning, then complimented her on her hair. She'd given him her phone number after two minutes of chit chat.

Then it was all a breeze, albeit a smelly one. Face had memorized Bay Ridge's layout so he knew right where to head for the jumbo sized carts they used for sheets, towels, and their hospital gowns to be sent for cleaning. The place seemed to be on a skeleton crew for the night shift, which was perfect. Face found a cart, and unloaded it while trying not to breathe. Then he found some clean sheets and blankets to use for cushioning the wheel out and to help keep his cargo under wraps.

Murdock had said via Duke Code that he was in room number 13A. He also knew to be ready to leave as soon as Face made his way to the room. If someone caught Face before he made it out the door, he'd fake being lost as this wasn't his normal route. Simplicity itself really…

So imagine his surprise when Face found Murdock with another patient waiting outside in the hallway that ran in front of his room.

"Murdock…" Face looked dubiously at the older man standing next to the pilot. "Who's this and why is he here?"

Murdock smiled nervously. "Hey Face. This is the Wizard. He's coming with us."

"He is huh?" Face looked at the man who nodded.

"Rory Lachlan," Rory saluted. "Marine Corp." He noted.

Face saluted back, nodding. He couldn't turn down a fellow solider. "Alright then, come on we have to get out of here. We've got a time table to follow."

Murdock hesitated. "Face, I…I've got someone else we have to bring."

Face looked at him like he was crazy, which granted he was used to. "Murdock, we don't have time to bring everyone here! I've only got one of these things!"

"Face we have to…I promised." Murdock stood firm, his face determined.

Peck shook his head. "Jesus…" he knew that look.

"Wait here…me and the Wizard will handle it. Just five minutes." Murdock looked expectantly at him.

"Okay, haul your ass. I have no idea how we're going to pull this off. You've got five minutes, and that's it." Face sighed and checked his watch. The Wizard and the Knight headed down another hallway to find the princess.

Luckily for them they found Trey instead, who was making his rounds. The two inmates decided on a plan and Rory quickly made his presence known to the surprised orderly who told him he should be in bed. Rory knew what to do, after telling him he couldn't sleep he started talking about music. While Trey's attention was elsewhere, Murdock deftly picked the ring of keys from his pocket and headed towards the white room.

****

Bubby closed the door behind him with a soft click. They'd been tapering her meds off for the last day or so. She was "recovered" or some bullshit. He didn't care. His thoughts were on the rest of his money and what he was going to do with it. It was also on the fact that she was still in this room and the walls were soundproof. Bubby was going to have some fun before he shot her full of heart stopper.

Samantha was asleep but some weird sense of self preservation kicked in. She opened her eyes and found that Bubby was standing next to her and refastening the restraints that had just been undone earlier that morning. He had three of them buckled. Her free hand shot out and slapped him out of instinct. He stopped but sadly Sam wasn't at a hundred percent like the last time she'd hit him. She still had a good dose of sedative in her system that was working its way out. Bubby had no such problem and punched her in return.

"Shit…" He said aloud. "You dumb bitch…" He rubbed his cheek while she lay there groaning. He wasn't supposed to leave a mark on her. He then decided he'd toss her in the floor when he was done. That way it would look like a fall. He chuckled to himself. "I walked into a door…" wasn't that always the way?

Bubby buckled her wrist and then grinned at her. "Yeah, you're freaky loony boyfriend ain't got nothing on me honey. I'm going to make you pay for every damn problem the two of you have caused me. Then I'm going to be the one that gets paid."

Sam struggled weakly. She felt like her head was in a fog plus it was now ringing like a bell. She tasted blood in her mouth. Above her she could see the shape of Bubby and felt the bed dip down as he climbed into it. God no…not this…not this… her brain cried out, trying to do something. But the restraints were on and she couldn't move…and his hand was sliding up her shirt. Maybe passing out would be a good idea, but she knew if she did she'd never wake up.

His weight was crushing her and his hand was clammy. "No…" she said aloud and was rewarded with a "Shut the fuck up." from him.

Then all of a sudden Bubby was flying. Sam felt his weight leave the bed, and then there was the sound of something crashing and falling hard against the wall. Her eyes opened hesitantly and she looked around wincing at the still loud ringing of her head. There was Bubby pulling himself to his feet and shaking his head clear. Her eyes looked towards the foot of her bed and there stood Lancelot and the expression on his face was pure undiluted anger as he glared over at Bubby.

"You…don't…touch…her." Murdock's words were a growl in the room. He was nearly panting, not from exertion but from barely contained fury. His forest fire colored eyes glowed in the dim light as they stared Bubby down. The days without sleep were forgotten. He was wide awake. "You never touch her."

"Alright freak. I've had enough of you." Bubby shook his head clear one more time and spat out a mix of saliva and blood. He was done dealing with this psycho. Rational thought was out of the equation. He just wanted to beat the little twerp into a pulp. He'd figure a way to explain him being dead too later. "Let's do this now."

Murdock took off his cap and then his robe and placed them near Sam's leg on the bed. He flexed his fingers and narrowed his gaze at the bigger man. "You're going down King Kong…" He told him with a crazy grin that most who knew him would realize wasn't his typical "crazy". It held a lot more menace and threat, and he usually reserved it for dog fights in the air. "You'd just better be ready to fall hard." The pilot added, and then they both ran at one another, each wearing the same smile.


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: Really, I don't have anything. **

**Authors Note: Hell yes! We hit over a hundred reviews! WOOOHOOOOO!**

**And Sharlto Copley is AWESOME~! MORE CAPITAL LETTERS AND EXCLAMATION POINTS NOW! **

**Thank you so much for all your reviews and kind words. I'm glad you like the ramblings from my brain (or what Murdock has left of it, he's been chewing a lot.) **

**So I decided to do something different…something INTERACTIVE! Who would you cast as Stewart? You choose an actor and the one most suggested is who I'll write him as. Never done this before...so I'm curious to see what you all say.**

**In the meantime…fights…escapes…and more Team members. Reviews are crack! Feed my addiction.**

**Chapter 14**

Face was nervously checking his watch and glancing around and swearing to never ever ask a woman to wear a thong again for him after the last hour of his life in the uniform from hell. Then he heard the crash followed by loud thuds and thumps that sounded suspiciously like a fight. "Uh oh…" He muttered. He headed down the hallway towards the direction Murdock and the old guy, Rory, had gone.

Rory had heard the noise too, and realized that things were not going as planned. When he came round the corner and peered through the slightly cracked door he saw Murdock and Bubby going to blows. Murdock appeared to have taken a few hits, but the look on his face was not that of a man going to stop or back down.

He ducked under a wild punch that the larger man threw and then came up with a hard right to Bubby's ribs, followed by a left knee to the stomach. Bubby wheezed and Murdock came closer to deal another punch when Bubby's fist shot out and caught him in the jaw, knocking him backwards. Rory nearly moved in to help him, but Murdock shook his head clear, glared at the other man, then jumped back into the fight.

Rory was impressed. But he knew the noise was going to attract the attention of everyone pretty soon. He fidgeted trying to keep an eye out and trying to figure out what he should do.

Inside the room Bubby laughed at the pilot. "You crazy bastard…you're lucky you came in when you did. I would have spoiled her for anyone else, and especially a freak like you."

Murdock knew this game. Get the other guy angry and make him careless. He'd been in enough fights to know how it was played. He usually just annoyed the other person, or confused them, sometimes not even on purpose. Insults just weren't his thing. He knew he shouldn't let the monkey get to him, he really really knew that.

But he just couldn't ignore what the monkey was saying about Samantha and what he had stopped the ape from doing. The thought of it, the very idea that the slime ball had nearly succeeded in…Murdock couldn't even think it. He was seeing the world through a haze of red and part of him wanted that red to be the same color as the ape's blood. He wanted to tear him in half. No one touched her…no one hurt her…she was his princess and he was her knight. He kept her safe. That was his job. And damn it…she was HIS princess.

Murdock clenched his fists, his ragged nails digging into his palms. He took a breath, his own ribs hurting from the lucky shots Bubby had made. He looked the guy over and noticed he was favoring one leg over the other. Murdock guessed the bastard had played football in high school, had bad knees, the right more so than the left.

He'd seen enough of the type in school himself. He'd messed around with baseball, but he'd turned out to be a drama geek. He remembered the jocks though, and their jeering and leering ways. The way they mocked him for being skinny, being in theater class, not having a lot of money. They didn't know about the ratio of boys to girls in drama…four to one. They didn't know that the only other two boys in the drama class were gay, which left Murdock a damn good shot at the ladies in the class with them.

He'd seen a few of the ex-jocks when he'd come back to visit what little family he had left after his first tour in the service. Murdock had taken to army life well…it had given him a routine, had given him focus which helped with his "issues." He'd also learned how to handle himself, gained some knowledge and some muscle…and after seeing how his old tormentors had turned out…a great sense of karma.

A corner of his mouth lifted up in a tiny smile. Oh this was going to be good…

Rory watched as the far smaller man came at the larger one. He faked to the left and while Bubby got off another shot that clipped him in the shoulder, Murdock hit out with his right fist, clocked him good, and then in a cringe inducing movement as Bubby was buckling, grasped his shoulders and brought his foot down squarely on the side of the other mans knee.

The sound was horrific, but not nearly as horrific as the scream Bubby let loose with. This time the orderly wasn't getting up. He also wasn't shutting up. And while Murdock thought the guy deserved to feel the abject pain of his broken knee for a lot longer, the screaming was going to bring undue attention. He decked him hard and knocked him out so he'd be quiet.

He stood up and winced at the aches already starting to flow through him. He'd be three times as sore in the morning. He knew that from experience too. Rory was at the door staring at him and Murdock sat heavily on the mattress next to Samantha trying to catch his breath. "Jerk…" He said heavily.

Rory nodded, not really thinking anything else had to be said. He walked in and checked the orderly out, noticing a small box sticking out of his pocket. He picked it up curious and found a syringe inside along with a vile of something. "What the hell is this? What the hell was he up to…besides the obvious?"

Murdock looked at what the Wizard was holding and realized that this could have been a lot worse…and that maybe he should break the monkeys other knee too. "Give me that." He held out his hand and pocketed the box. "We need to get out of here now." He said, putting on the faded robe and shoving his hat on his head. He quickly started undoing Samantha's restraints. She was still fairly out of it. Which after what had just happened was probably a good thing.

As he was undoing the two on her ankles Trey showed up at the door.

"What the fuck? What the hell is going on in here? What the…" His dark eyes were wide and his mouth hung open as he saw Bubby laying motionless on the floor and the crazy pilot with the girl. He was wearing a walkie talkie and a voice crackled over it asking what was going on. But he didn't have a chance to answer as Rory hit him in the back of the head with a bedpan. He fell on top of Bubby out cold.

"There's gonna be more coming." Rory told Murdock, tossing the thankfully clean bedpan in the corner. "You guys weren't exactly discreet."

"I've never claimed to be." Murdock replied. He had the last buckle undone and moved back up to the head of the bed. "Hey princess…." He said gently.

Sam's eyes barely opened but she made a noise in her throat that sounded vaguely awake. She tried to push away from him and he realized she thought he was the monkey. "Hey hey…its me…its okay." He whispered gently and grasped hold of her arms. She managed to look at him and he saw recognition cross her face.

"Lance…lot…" She said dazedly.

"We're leaving baby." He told her, holding her gaze for as long as he could. "Just like I told ya…we're blowing this pop stand." He reached over and gently pulled the IV out of her arm, wincing when he heard the little sound of pain she made. "Sorry…" He muttered and quickly pulled the belt of his robe out of the loops and wrapped it around the now bleeding spot where the needle had been.

The sounds of staff approaching came to their ears. Rory looked down the hall and frowned. There was another three of the orderlies and a nurse looking around for where the commotion was coming from. The vet sighed. Yeah, this wasn't going as planned at all.

"Can you walk?" Murdock asked her, helping her sit up.

Sam tried hard to concentrate on what he was saying, but she couldn't make herself do it. "I…dunno…" She sounded like an idiot to her own ears and she hated it.

"Their coming." Rory said from the other side of the door.

"Well, that means my question is moot." Murdock said by way of response and then without preamble slipped his arms beneath Samantha and picked her up off the bed.

"Hey…you…can't…I…heavy..." What the hell had happened to her brain?

"Shut it princess." Murdock told her, walking over to the door and peering around the corner. "Crap…we need to get to Face. They were getting closer and Murdock knew that he'd not be able to take all of them.

"I think he's still where we left him." Rory replied. Even though they were running a minute or two passed the five minutes promised, he knew that the young solider who'd come to rescue his fellow Ranger wouldn't leave him behind.

Rory turned back to the knight beside him holding the princess in his arms. He smiled at the two of them and let out a soft laugh. These two were going to be trouble for anyone who got in their way. Sam was safe with him, and he'd help her keep that darkness at bay that had nearly got her. Rory had no doubt she'd help the pilot with his own demons.

"You head back down the hallway kid, and find your friend. Get her the hell out of here." Rory told Murdock as he stepped out of the room.

Murdock looked at him confused. "We're all going to get out of here." He told the Wizard.

"No we're not kid." Rory looked at Sam who gazed back at him with glossy eyes. "Keep her safe and help her do what she needs to. She didn't deserve any of this." He looked up at Murdock. "See you Ranger." He gave him a salute and then a grin and with that Roaring Rory took off down the hallway heading towards the monkeys and the witch, living up to his nickname and yelling at the top of his lungs.

Murdock didn't have time to try and stop him, for an old Wizard the guy could move fast. Magic probably. But he led the monkeys away from them. He looked down at Sam and saw she was crying again, but very softly, quietly with one hand fisted around the collar of his robe. He held her tighter against his chest and then took off towards where Face would be waiting.

When he came round the corner and nearly collided with him they two of them both shrieked like women.

"What the hell Murdock?" Face was holding his chest like he'd had a heart attack.

"We need to go now…like now now." Murdock looked behind him, sure that a monkey would appear out of nowhere.

"That attitude would have been great you know…ten minutes ago." Face glared at him then realized that he was carrying a woman in his arms and was missing a grey haired man. "Where's the old guy? And who's the girl?"

Murdock glanced away, a sadness coming over him. "The Wizard took one for the team." He turned back to Face, his eyes going frantic. "This is the princess and we need to get her out of here…one of the monkeys tried to kill her."

Face's expression was one of both confusion and disbelief, mixed with just a bit of awe. Murdock had that effect on most people. "I'm not even going to ask right now…we don't have time. But when we are out of this hell hole and I have a beer in my hand you're going to explain that statement."

"Fine Face...I'll even cook up some ribs. Can we just go?" Murdock's voice grew slightly higher when he was nervous.

Face nodded and the three of them headed back to where Face had left the laundry cart. Samantha was barely conscious when they got there, a combination of shock, drugs, and sheer exhaustion sapping away every bit of strength she had. Face told Murdock to climb into the cart.

Murdock eyed it warily, remembering his last experience earlier with the laundry cart and what it contained. Face noticed. "Dude, I took the dirty stuff out. It's clean…will you get in!"

The pilot sighed and passed Samantha to Face who held her gingerly while Murdock hopped into the cart. He didn't waste anytime on gesturing for him to hand her back. He loved Face like a brother, but he didn't trust him an inch when it came to women, and especially a princess. Face was the sort of, well, the sort of face you thought of when it came to what a prince would look like. He didn't need that worry on top of everything else right then.

Murdock settled into the bottom of the cart curling around the sleeping woman in his arms. If it had been any other sort of situation this might have been awkward and most likely not having a chance in hell of happening. But right then desperate times and all that…her hair was tickling his nose and he wasn't minding.

Face tossed some more laundry over them, thankfully still clean. It quickly got dark and stuffy, and Murdock heard Samantha make a little sound of fear in her throat. He pulled her a little closer and whispered very softly into her ear "You're okay Samantha. There's nothing to worry about. Go back to sleep sleeping beauty. You're safe." They hit a bump and Murdock could just make out the sound of Face talking to someone. His arms tightened around Samantha out of instinct.

Face was wheeling the cart to the truck when he ran into Larry at the desk he'd come in nearby. His frisky well coiffed nurse was nowhere to be found. Larry looked as if he wasn't pleased with his lot in life at the moment. There was what looked like applesauce on the front of his scrubs shirt. At least Face hoped it was applesauce.

"Rough night from the sound of it." Face gave his "I understand and I'm a nice guy" smile.

Larry grunted. "You could say that. One guy decided to toss his snack at me. And then the one guy I thought was half way sane lost it tonight and took off like a banshee. They still haven't caught him and I'm stuck here at desk duty while Flo takes her lunch." He gave Face a look. "What happened to Phil?"

"Food poisoning, nasty stuff." Face started pushing the cart out the wide doors. Thank god, they hadn't figured out anyone else was on the loose yet.

"Well, hope your night gets better." He had to keep himself from running. It was very hard to do. But he loaded the cart into the back and shut the doors. He really REALLY wanted to tear the uniform off but he couldn't do that yet either. Face hopped behind the wheel, started the truck, and pulled calmly out of Bay Ridge and into the street, going the speed limit.

"How you doing Phil?" He called to the back of the truck. He heard a muffled reply that sounded like "mmuck moo." But Face couldn't be sure.

Ten miles down the road Face came to the meeting place. It was off a dirt road and hidden by a copse of trees. A blue mini van was waiting with a tall, African American man leaning against its hood looking disgusted just having to touch it. He had a Mohawk and shoulders as broad as tree trunk.

Face pulled up alongside him and stopped the truck.

"Did you get the crazy fool?" Boscoe asked without preamble. "Cause I've been waiting here all night with this…van." He sounded like he was going to choke on the word.

"Yeah I have the crazy fool and a bonus gift too." Face hopped out of the truck, once again trying to keep from being split in half.

"Bonus gift?" BA walked behind him, following him to the back of the truck. He tried not to laugh. "You talking about that wedgie you've got going on?"

Face turned and glared at BA. "No smart guy, I'm not talking about my wedgie." He opened the doors of the truck and hopped up into the back. He went to the cart and ignoring Phil pulled the blankets and the towels out of it. "I'm talking about this."

BA looked down into the cart, his dark brown eyes going wide. "You gotta be kidding me."

There was a smiling Murdock, cuddled up with Samantha, both of them sound asleep. And they were surrounded by straightjackets.


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: I own only what I brought to this poker game.**

**Authors Note: Only three suggestions so far for Stewart. Keep em coming along with the reviews. I'm so glad you all like this. **

**So this chapter is a little bit angst and little bit heart warming. Sam's earned it after what she's had go down I think. So enjoy. It was fun writing it. **

**Oh, and MOAR CRACK feed my addiction!**

**Chapter 15**

When Samantha woke up she felt slightly hung over. She also found herself fighting off invisible attackers. When her brain decided that there was really no one there she sat up and realized she was no longer in the White Room and there was no Bubby trying to molest her. Her eyes wide, Sam looked around and found herself in a room she didn't recognize. Her heart started beating faster and she wondered just what the hell was going on. Her head was fuzzy and so was her vision.

She glanced down and there on the nightstand near the bed were her glasses and a folded piece of paper that had written along the top in bold ink "**DON'T FREAK OUT**" Sam picked up her glasses and slid them on while flipping the note over to read.

"Morning Princess,

As stated, don't freak out. You're safe and out of the loony bin. Told you I'd get you out. We're off to get breakfast. I'll bring you back something real to eat and clothes too. Then we can talk about how to fix your problem.

Don't leave the room till we get back. Don't freak out. I mentioned that already though. There's cable TV and a great shower. Try the shiatsu setting. Be back soon.

Lancelot"

Samantha sat there with her mouth hanging open for a full minute as most of the events of last night came back to her. "Holy crap…" She said to the empty room. Where the hell had he brought her? And who was the "We" he mentioned? Sam glanced over at the nightstand again and saw the tell tale markings of a motel phone. Okay, so that answered that question some.

She looked around and noticed in the thin light coming through the pulled curtains another full sized bed that looked like it had been slept in. There was in fact a TV and she saw the remote next to the digital clock on the stand. The time read 9:34. On shaky legs she stood up and felt threadbare carpet beneath her feet. A cheap wooden desk with an equally cheap lamp sat near the TV stand.

Sam felt a wave of dizzy hysteria come over her and she sat back down heavily on her bed. Things were so beyond her right then. She'd nearly been raped…her lip was still swollen. She could feel the cut with her tongue, still stinging. She could feel his hand under her shirt. She was alone in a strange motel somewhere and she didn't know what to do.

The door to the room opened and she jumped and shrieked in surprise, causing the man opening it to also jump and shriek in surprise. Murdock realized maybe knocking would have been a good idea.

"It's just me!" He said, trying to keep hold of the two bags he was carrying as well as hold up his hands to show he was completely innocent of any sort of wrong doing.

Sam stared at him in shock and seemed to finally calm down after a second or two.

When he realized she wasn't going to bolt or scream anymore Murdock shut the door and slowly walked over to the desk and placed the two plastic bags on it. He'd happily changed out of his typical hospital fare. Face had brought his clothes and he had on a pair of faded jeans, a Johnny Cash t-shirt and his battered leather jacket. His scuffed boots had replaced his slippers and the ever present baseball cap was still adorning his head.

He took off his jacket and tossed it on the other bed in the room. He noticed her jerk as though afraid. Murdock didn't like that reaction…she wasn't supposed to be afraid of him. "Hey, I'm not gonna hurt you. Remember?" He studied her face and saw an expression very near that of shell shock. He really did wish he'd broken that monkeys other knee.

"Princess its okay, I promise your safe with me." He sat down on the opposite bed very slowly. "That ape isn't going to hurt anybody for a long time."

She looked at him warily and he could see the slight trembling of her lower lip. She really was scared. Murdock knew he shouldn't be hurt by the reaction, but it did sting. Even though she did have every right to be freaked out; he doubted she even knew about the stuff in the monkey's pocket.

It was bad enough what Murdock had caught him trying to do, but he was going to kill her afterward. He'd wait with that bit of news. Right now, he needed to get her to trust him again. They were on the outside now and there was no nice clinical and controlled setting. He knew how he always needed a bit to adjust to that sort of thing. But with Samantha there were a lot of other factors involved.

"Samantha?" He said her name, trying to get her attention. "I know you're scared. But I told you I was going to help you. I'm not going to hurt you. You know that right?" He gave her what he hoped was a completely innocent smile. He saw a subtle shake of her head.

Okay, now for bribery. He pointed at the desk. "There's some breakfast for you. I figured after that stuff that they were passing off as food you might like something good and fattening. So I got you a double cheese omelet with bacon and mushrooms. Sort of like a pizza stuffed inside an egg."

She glanced over at the desk, still nervous. "Double cheese?" She asked softly.

Murdock grinned. "Yep…I could cook a better one but, well…we don't have a kitchen of our own or one I could commander."

"You…already ate?" She asked. Her head was getting a little calmer. Sam started wondering why she had been afraid of him. But she was still shaking…God…what was wrong with her…

"Yeah, Face and BA…we went to the diner across the street." He looked sheepishly at the floor. "I figured you could use the sleep, so I left you the note and your glasses. Figured you might want those back."

Sam touched the frames and realized she'd been without them for a while. "How did you…"

Before she could finish he caught her eyes with his. Even in the low light of the room she could see their forest green color grow a shade darker as he answered. "When they took you away, I found them on the floor." He swallowed, glancing at the wall. "I kept them safe for you."

"Thank you…" She told him. Samantha felt like an idiot. The man sitting across from her had done more for her than anyone ever had. She had flashes of two men warring against one another close to her. The sound of fighting was loud and violent. Sam remembered being carried to safety. She heard Murdock's voice soothing against her ear as darkness fell around her and it grew hard to breathe, calming her down and repeating it was going to be okay.

He'd saved her, just like he'd promised. He'd protected her, just as he said he would. And he'd got her out. He'd done all of that, and here she was acting terrified of him. "Thank you." Sam repeated herself, and felt tears forming in her eyes. But she wasn't going to cry. That would just be awkward, and she didn't want awkward. What she wanted was that omelet because she could smell the bacon and that might be part of what was making her so emotional.

Murdock looked a little uncomfortable and maybe a little embarrassed. He didn't need glasses so he could see she was getting a little weepy. He really hated seeing her cry…so he hoped that she wouldn't. He noticed her glancing over at the desk again. "Did I mention salsa? Cause yeah, I got salsa too…and hash browns."

"Toast?" Sam's eyes flicked back to him.

"Sourdough, two slices covered in butter and a big bottle of orange juice." He cocked an eyebrow. "I know how to treat ladies."

She hesitated, looked back and forth for another few heartbeats. Why was she so skittish? She knew her hands were shaking…but she knew she shouldn't be afraid of him. "Mur…Murdock…" She said his name and the pilot winced at the brittle sound.

"Yeah baby?" He answered her gently.

"I don't…I don't know why I'm acting like this." Her fingers curled into fists and she held them tightly against her thighs. She closed her eyes and took a breath. "I'm…being stupid…"

The pilot hesitated for a moment and then went with his instinct, something that had kept him alive through many a dogfight and many a dangerous situation. He stood and then sat next to her on the bed. Very slowly he put an arm around her shoulders. He felt her tense, but she didn't scream or run away. That was progress. "You're not stupid baby…You're in shock." He spoke softly, the southern of his real voice wrapping around her like a comfy blanket. "You're allowed to be a little nuts right now; it comes with the territory…and the company."

"I'm not afraid of you…" she said, opening her eyes and staring at cigarette burn in the carpet.

"I'm glad to hear it princess." He smiled sadly, some of those hurt feelings going away. "But you're gonna be a bit spooked after what's gone on. There's nothing to do but ride it out. Plus you're still coming down off the stuff they pumped into you." He saw her hand shaking, and very gently took hold of it with his own. "That's why you've got the shakes, at least partially. That'll go away soon."

Her head came to rest against his shoulder, something that was becoming familiar and comforting. Maybe too much so, but Samantha wasn't going to care about that. He was here and right then she really needed her knight to be her knight. "You sound like you know all about this." She said. The scents of curry and engine oil that typically surrounded him had been replaced by what she knew was Irish Spring soap and the mint of toothpaste. She missed the curry.

Murdock leaned his cheek against her hair and risked giving her a slight hug. "I know enough." He replied and felt her burrow up against him tighter. He closed his eyes at the sensation; afraid to get used to it but knowing it was too late…he already liked it too much.

He held her like that for a full minute before he spoke again. "Bacon helps to you know…" Much to his relief he felt her laugh, heard it faintly.

"Bacon helps most everything." She replied sighing. "Much like chocolate."

"That's in the other bag, and it's for later." He told her grinning despite how hard it was for him to pull away from her. But he did and pointed towards the desk. "Real food first and hurry before it gets cold. Nothing as nasty as cold eggs."

Sam headed over to the desk and grabbed the bag that the heavenly bacon smell was coming from. She pulled out the orange juice and the Styrofoam container and found a set of plastic utensils at the bottom with the napkins. Inside the container as promised was the giant omelet, two thick slices of sourdough bread liberally buttered, and a mound of hash browns. Sam had to take a second to truly appreciate it all. "You really do know how to treat a lady." She said without looking around.

Murdock grinned widely as he settled back against the pillows and grabbed the TV remote and flicked on the tube. "Ladies ain't all that different from us men folk. Well they are…but…well…you know what I mean." He looked over to find Samantha taking a bite of toast and giving him a look that said "Go on, dig your hole a little deeper that you've gotten yourself into."

"What I mean is everyone likes a good meal. That's what I'm saying." He waved her to get going "Now eat…eat." He turned back to the TV and settled on the Discovery Channel where a Mythbusters marathon was playing.

He was engrossed in the show and didn't notice that she was watching it too until she made a weird "OOH" noise. "Thif the wun where he does the jell-o pool." She said with a mouthful of hash browns and pointed at the TV with her fork.

Murdock glanced over at her and nearly laughed himself out of the bed. She had a blob of salsa on her cheek and one on her nose. "No flinging food on the TV." He told her grinning. "You might want to wipe your face there sweetheart…"

"Oh…sorry." Sam grabbed a napkin and got rid of the salsa. "That better?"

Murdock nodded, still grinning. "Yep." He turned back to the TV. "Always wanted to try that Jell-O thing, never had the opportunity. Need a pool or something I suppose."

"I wonder if Bill Cosby ever did that?" She shoveled some more decadently calorie laden omelet into her mouth.

"That was pudding, but I bet you could fill a pool with pudding and walk on it. Wonder if they paid him in pudding. Dude has to be loaded what with like a hundred seasons of the Cosby Show and Fat Albert under his belt." Murdock looked thoughtful. "That reminds me don't let BA or Face near our chocolate. That's an escapee only perk."

Sam turned back to Murdock. "Who's BA and Face?" She asked taking a bite of toast.

The pilot smiled and looked wistful. "Ah, that's a funny story."


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: VOTE FOR COPLEY VOTE FOR COPLEY AT THE SPIKE SCREAM AWARDS! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DON'T LET TWILIGHT BEAT HIM AND DISTRICT 9!**

**Authors Note: No Face or BA in this chapter yet. But we do get some nice Sam and Murdock time. And she had to be told…Plus it's always fun to write these two. I enjoy it damn it. I'M THE GOD I'M THE GOD! (slaps self) Sorry, I do that sometimes.**

**I hope you like it and I promise next chapter we'll have the team assembled. In the meantime please feed me my crack (aka reviews.) **

**Oh and see the Disclaimer. Please PLEASE vote for D9 and Sharlto Copley at the Spike webpage. **

**Chapter 16**

"And that's how I wound up on the run from the Feds and some really pissed off CIA agents." Murdock finished, looking smug after the last thirty minutes of rattling off his history of just who BA and Face were as well as how they came to be fugitives. Sam had been silent for most of the story.

"You flipped a helicopter." Was the first thing that came from her mouth.

Murdock tried not to have his ego grow by leaps and bounds that that was the first thing she said. But it did anyway…he couldn't help it. "Well, yeah…but that's not the point."

"You flipped a helicopter. That's nearly impossible." Sam's eyes were now fairly wide. "You're also wanted by the government, like the entire government?"

"Well, if it helps at this point it's not just the US government that's ticked off at us." Murdock took off his cap and scratched at his hair.

Sam's mouth fell a little bit more open. "Sort of a no…" Sam told him. She was still a little shell shocked by the events at Bay Ridge and now with Murdock's history firmly known.

It was unbelievable, but three factors made her realize it wasn't some delusional fantasy. Number one, they'd escaped. That took skill. Number two, his story was far too detailed. And the last was what Rory had said not to mention what Murdock had said at the asylum. Rory had told her he'd been in the military and the pilot himself had spoken about being in the most kick ass unit around. All of that added up to him not being delusional, at least about this.

She stood up from the chair and Murdock tensed, ready to see her run out of the room and down the street. He couldn't let her do that, not when he knew she was in danger. He realized the knowledge that he was a fugitive probably wasn't going to set well with her…but he needed to keep her safe for her own good. He waited and watched.

Sam started walking back and forth in front of the desk, trying to wrap her head around what he'd just said, and where she found herself. "This is crazy." She stated aloud, taking her glasses off and rubbing between her eyes.

"You've not met BA yet. When you see the haircut, then you'll ratchet that up to "This is bat shit crazy." Murdock slipped off the bed and stood looking uncertain. "Samantha, I know I'm not the most…reliable sounding person you know right now." He started to say, and she turned to look at him, slipping her glasses up on her nose. Her expression was hard to read, but the pilot knew he had to tell her the truth about her situation no matter what. In her case what she didn't know could kill her.

Murdock sighed heavily. "But you need to trust me. My friends, my team…we're good at what we do. And what we do is help people. And you need help princess."

Sam laughed. "Yeah I know that." The pilot wasn't laughing, and the look in Murdock's eyes made her stop. Her brows narrowed. "What?" She prodded him.

He took a step towards her, just in case, making it hard for her to run past him. "Bubby, the winner that attacked you…he wasn't just trying to have some fun. When you told me why you were there, I was worried about what might happen…and well…I was right. They want you dead princess." His voice grew softer at the end, as if that might lessen what he was saying.

He watched her, seeing the fear pool in her eyes as it replaced the disbelief. He watched the trembling start in first her hands, and then hit her shoulders. Her head shook back and forth just slightly, as if denying it. But he knew she realized it was true. Not only true, but to be expected.

She'd been living the fantasy that they would just leave her alone, or her brother would somehow keep her safe. She should have known better.

"They…sent him to kill me…" Her voice was as shaky as the rest of her. Murdock wondered how much more she could take.

"Yeah…yeah they did." Murdock took another step towards her. "But I'm going to keep you safe, just like I promised you I would; just like I promised the Wizard."

Samantha sat heavily on the bed, staring at the wall. "You can't take on the whole of that mob…" She said her voice emotionless. She was going to die it was just a matter of time. She'd watched enough History Channel and Discovery Channel to know how these things panned out, let alone what movies had taught her.

Murdock could hear the defeat starting to take hold of her again. He needed to stop this fast. He knelt down in front of her, as though getting ready to propose. And he was actually, but it wasn't a marriage. "Maybe not alone…though I bet I could give them a run for their money." He caught her eyes with his and gave her a half smile. "But my team can."

"What?" She asked him distractedly, her thoughts occupied by the fact that if she did die, at least her rat brother would get his…if everything worked out as she'd hoped it would. There was always a chance it wouldn't. And she'd never be any the wiser…sleeping with the fishes or buried in concrete under a road somewhere.

Murdock moved to sit beside her again. He needed her to focus, and she wasn't. "My boys, my team, my compadres; we can keep you safe and fix this mess. That's what we do. We help people in trouble…and you're in a whole mess of it.

What he was saying finally registered and Sam shook her head no. "I'm not putting anymore people in harms way Murdock."

She stood and made to leave. He grabbed her hand and pulled her back down again. She glared at him and smacked his arm, pulling at his grip. He didn't let go. He knew better than to let her go. "Hey...stop that…listen dang it!" He told her, grabbing her other wrist after a few attempts, and a couple more slaps of his arm. She hadn't gone for his face yet, which was appreciated.

"Let go of me! I mean it! I'm not putting you in anymore danger. This is dumb!" She said still trying to get free of his hold.

"No, you're being dumb." He told her frowning feeling like he was eight years old and arguing with his cousin. He yanked on her arms and got her to stop struggling. "You do realize that Bruiser and Vinnie are waiting outside that door right?" When he saw her eyes grow as big as saucers he sighed. "Metaphorically I mean." He added quickly. "We can keep you safe Samantha. I'll keep you safe. But you have to trust me. Have I lied to you so far?"

Looking into his big green eyes Sam couldn't fault him on that last thing he said. He'd not lied to her at all. She let her arms go limp and stared at the ugly bedspread. "No, no you haven't lied to me."

Murdock slipped his fingers from her wrists and took hold of her hands. "Then trust me okay? My team, we've been through it all. What I told ya, that was just the tip of the iceberg." He gave her a grin when he saw her glance up at him warily.

She sighed, giving up. Another problem…she couldn't tell him no it seemed. "I trust you Lancelot." She pursed her lips in thought. "How do you know the rest of your team will be okay with this?"

"Oh they will be. Those guys owe me a couple of times over." His grin widened, and his eyes crinkled in the corners, lines etched there from a combination of smiling a lot and looking into the sky too often. "I've saved their collective butts on more than one occasion."

Sam smiled back at him not able to help it, feeling a little bit better about having a hit on her life…if that was possible. Her face took on a look of determination and she squeezed his fingers lightly. "I'm paying you…for all of this I mean. Somehow…if all this gets resolved, I'm paying you for your help. You said you were soldiers for hire right?"

Murdock looked offended for a moment. He wasn't going to take money from her. That wasn't how this worked. But it did…that was what the team did now, just to survive. He was sure the rest of the guys would be expecting payment. But no, not this time. He'd call in some debts on this one. This was for his princess and she'd already paid enough.

"Like hell you are." He told her sternly. She went to argue with him and he stopped her. "Hush it. I'm not taking your money. Remember this is my job. I'm your knight, protector and defender. This is what I do." It was bizarre to hear his voice slip from southern twang to British, but it happened just like that.

She let out a Marge Simpson like sound of annoyance. Another of those fathomless expressions crossed her face. "Murdock…we're not in the asylum anymore. I'm not…"

His green eyes narrowed at her, his lips thinning and she could tell he wasn't happy with what she was going to say. "We've been over this." He said cutting her off again. His voice went back to the deeper southern lilt, the one that meant business. She couldn't argue with this one.

Sam gave up…again. "Alright you win." She told him and his face went back to the slightly crooked smile.

"Get used to that baby." He gave her a wink that could only be described as saucy. Sam felt her cheeks turn a slight shade of pink. Where the hell had that come from?

She quickly changed the subject. "So when do I get to meet the rest of your friends?"

Murdock's grin widened and he stood suddenly and grabbed the other bag he'd been carrying off the desk. "Well you sort of already met Face…but I doubt you remember it." He pulled out a large bag of Hershey's Kisses and placed them to the side. "We were in a rush and you were sort of…"

"Out of my gourd?" She offered.

"That's one way to put it." He replied pulling out a brown box and laying it next to the chocolate. "I prefer to call it my typical Thursday night dose." He turned back to her and saw her eyes had gone wide behind her glasses again. "Just kidding…that's more of a Friday."

Samantha didn't know if he was actually joking or not. He handed her the bag still smiling and she took it from him, looking inside.

"There's some clothes and stuff in there. I guessed your size…Face helped." Murdock didn't look too pleased with that last part. "He knows…stuff like that better than I do. And…well…anyway…"

Sam pulled out a pair of jeans and a t-shirt which she unfurled to discover had a picture of Scarlet from GI Joe emblazoned across the front. "Nice choice…" She grinned. Then she noticed there was a bra and underwear at the bottom of the bag along with a woman's travel toiletry set. Her eyebrows rose as she looked over at Murdock.

The pilot turned a slight shade of pink this time. "Face…like I said…he's good at that sort of thing. I mean…I picked the shirt…he…he did the rest." He stuttered and then grabbed the box off the table, looking for a distraction. "But I picked these for ya."

Sam placed the bag next to her and took the proffered box. She opened it and found inside a pair of High Top Converses, bright red with black stitching. They were the perfect size and she loved them immediately. "These are awesome!" She grinned widely. She looked up at him "You really do know how to treat a lady."

Murdock turned a darker shade of pink, scratching the back of his neck. "Aw shucks…like I said…we ain't that much different." He looked at the sneakers. "Best shoes in the world…next to these boots of course….I had to leave mine behind when we broke out." He sighed heavily. "No time to grab em. But Face brought my boots with him…so I'm okay."

She looked up at him and frowned. "I'm sorry…I'll pay you back for these so you can get another pair."

"Woman I swear…" He rolled his eyes exasperated. "Can you understand the words coming out of my mouth?" He enunciated them dramatically. "You are not paying me back for anything. I have clothes and footwear…you didn't. You needed shoes more than I did…in short DUH."

Sam laughed, clutching the shoes to her chest. "Alright, message understood."

"It wasn't such a big loss anyway…those shoes were falling apart." He told her.

"But that means their perfect." Sam said pouting slightly. Everyone knew that about Cons.

"You're not helping." He muttered.

"Sorry…" Sam hushed, wincing.

Murdock couldn't help but smile at her. She looked so guilty. "Well I'll leave you to it. Get washed up and all and I'll go check in on Face and BA to see if the Colonel has shown up." He grabbed his jacket off the bed and slipped it on. "No opening the door or leaving till I get back, okay?" Her shoulders slumped and he felt that familiar twinge hit him at the sight.

"Okay." She replied, her voice soft. Sam didn't think she'd get used to this.

Murdock frowned slightly. "Hey, I'll knock before I come in. Less screaming that way."

That brought a smile back to her lips for which he was glad. "Less me knocking you on the head with a lamp too I'm guessing."

The pilot grinned. "Thank you for not doing that this time." He turned to leave and she followed him to the door.

"Hey Murdock?" Sam said gently, her fingers twisting around one another.

He turned to look at her, his hand on the handle. "Yeah princess?"

Sam hesitated for a second then decided to hell with it. She threw her arms around him and hugged him. "Thank you." She said against his collar. She felt his back tense and for a moment she thought she'd done something wrong. Then his arms went around her waist and she felt him give her a light squeeze back, his chin settling on her shoulder.

"You're welcome." When he spoke his voice was honey southern and warm against her ear. Samantha was reminded suddenly that he was on top of everything else a full grown man and she was hugging him in a hotel room…alone. Oh lord.

Murdock pulled away and looked down at her with forest colored eyes that seemed to out green most of the trees she'd seen in her life. Sam found herself trying to name the color, but was at a loss right then for anything to do them justice.

"Hey…I almost forgot." He told her thankfully breaking her out of the train of thought. He reached into the pocket of his jacket and pulled out something. Sam found out what it was when he placed it on her head. "Incognito is a good thing." He grinned at her.

She reached up and pulled the hat off her head, discovering it to be a blue version of the one he was wearing. She smiled. "I am so not airborne."

"For the time being...but I'm going to change that." He winked at her again. "That'll help cover up your hair and all. Less obvious who you are. So yeah, it can't hurt till we know what we're dealing with. Plus…it's just damn stylish. I'll be back." He gave her one more crooked smile and then slipped out the door.

Sam shook her head, wondering how the man could make her laugh when her life was in danger. Then she decided that was better than the alternative of crying and being terrified. She made sure the door was locked and then headed back over to where the bag with her new clothes was waiting. She grinned and brought the cap up to her nose, sniffed and then smiled fully. It smelled like curry and engine oil.


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: I don't own the A-Team. Still don't own them. I own the blu ray…and a doll…and some comics. But I do own all the original stuff in this story.**

**Authors Note: WOW. It appears that Lord of Lunacy is loved by a lot of people. I'm sorry for the delay in adding to this story (it's not dead I promise.) I have some other fics going on right now plus real life sort of takes a big chunk of my time (sadly.) But it's not dead. I'll be trying to update more often. Thank you all for the reviews and faves. **

**Please keep reviewing as it's the only way I know people like what I'm doing with our boys ! More on the way I promise! But reviews prod me to write faster and to write moar! **

**Chapter 17**

BA and Face were playing a friendly game of poker, which of course Face was winning. When Murdock walked into their room he could tell that another loss of a hand would be the end of BA's patience and possibly of Face. It wasn't that Face cheated, it was that BA was as easy to read as an open book when it came to what he had for cards.

Face looked up and gave Murdock a once over, then turned back to his cards. "So how's she doing?" He asked him.

Murdock sighed and sat down on the edge of one of the beds. "She's doing pretty darn well considering."

BA glanced over at the pilot. "We don't need no extra problems man. We've got enough of our own to deal with."

Face could tell by the way Murdock's eyes turned a shade darker that BA was starting to tread on dangerous ground. "Hey now…I think Murdock did a good deed BA."

"I'm not saying he didn't." BA tossed down his cards, folding. "I'm saying we don't need anymore problems."

Murdock's mouth twisted into a frown. "Sam's not a problem, she just has problems."

"Yeah, we all have problems." BA glanced over at the pilot. "I'm looking at one of the biggest ones I have right now."

Face was used to this sort of back and forth between the boys. But Murdock wasn't usually this quiet in response. He was fiddling with his baseball cap and he looked like he wanted to say something back to the big guy, but was holding it in. "Full house…pay up buttercup." He placed his cards down on the small table with a flourish and his 100 watt smile.

BA was not pleased. He let out a growl of noise and slammed his cards down so hard a small crack appeared in the pseudo wood of the table top. "That ain't right. There ain't no way you can win that many times."

"Hey now BA, you know that poker's not your game. I tried to warn you." Face scooped his winnings towards him but saw the glare and flare of nostrils that the large man with the Mohawk was throwing his way. Face laughed a little nervously and then decided that maybe if he wanted to keep his spleen he should try a bit of niceness. "Hey I tell you what, why don't I buy us lunch later with some of this mean green. I think I saw a nice little Indian place down the way off the interstate. They might even have a buffet."

BA didn't look much happier, but he didn't appear ready to kill him anymore either. Face took that as an improvement. Pocketing the wad of cash he looked back over to Murdock who was still nervously playing with his cap. "So where are we dropping her off?" Face asked him.

The pilot's eyes flicked back to Face and then back down to the hat in his hands. Now was time for him to break the news and call in those favors. "We're…not dropping her off."

Face's blue eyes got wider. "Excuse me?"

BA simply stood up and said loudly "Hell no."

Murdock steeled himself for the inevitable. He was a knight damn it. "Look, I know you guys are not thrilled with this, but she needs our help." He stood up and pulled on his baseball cap as though it were a piece of armor. "She's in danger Face, they're trying to kill her."

Face shook his head and leaned back in his chair sighing. "Murdock, you know we can't just help everybody that comes our way. We have to pick and choose these things and plus we're running low on funds. If Hannibal didn't score on that job in Toronto then we're really screwed."

Murdock started pacing, a sure sign that he was getting agitated. "She's not everybody Face. She's a princess and she's in trouble. It's my job to help her. If we don't then she's…well, that's not going to happen. I'm not letting it."

"Your girlfriend is gonna have to fend for herself fool." BA commented crossing his arms in front of his massive chest. "We already broke her out of the nuthouse with you."

Murdock stopped pacing and turned, his eyes growing dark and narrowing on the bigger man. Face had seen that look before only a few times. It wasn't pointed at any of the team, but those that inspired it weren't in the best of health after. Face groaned inwardly. He did not want to know what the outcome of a fight between Murdock and BA would be. It wouldn't be pretty that was for sure, and he had an inkling that the wiry pilot wouldn't go down as easily as BA might think.

Face held out his hands in a gesture of "calm it down." He turned to Murdock. "Hey, you know what we've got going on right now. I mean Hannibal hasn't even got back yet. And Lynch is god knows where. You really think we can handle taking on another issue?"

Murdock's flinty gaze turned to Face and the conman was struck by how dangerous it was. It matched his voice when he spoke. "Her name is Samantha."

"Alright alright…Samantha." Face dearly wished Hannibal were around. "Explain to me what Samantha has going on."

BA let out a sound of irritation that garnered him a glare from both Murdock and Face. He rolled his eyes and went to flop down heavily on his bed, grabbing a Car and Driver magazine off the nightstand and rattling it loudly as he opened it.

Murdock turned back to Face and decided to give him the entire story as Samantha had shared it and included everything that had happened in Bay Ridge. He could talk fast when he needed to. When he was through Face looked gob smacked.

"Wow Murdock, when you say trouble you don't mess around." Face took a swig from his now warm beer and grimaced. "You managed to find a mark for the mob in the middle of an asylum. That's impressive."

Murdock took a pull off his own bottle which he'd snagged from the table. He'd calmed down during the telling of the story some. And he realized that the old proverb "you get more bees with honey" was true here. It was time for those debts to be paid. He glanced up at Face and gave him a crooked smile. "I never said I wasn't impressive. And speaking of impressive, you're not going to make me bring up South America are you?"

Peck's face drained of color. "Oh no, you are not going to pull that…"

Murdock grinned knowingly. "If that won't do then how's about that little job in North Korea, or maybe that time in Italy with the cultists…or if we want to get more current, how was it I wound up in the nut hutch this time around? I'm sure I can write you out a list if that makes it easier."

Face groaned and Murdock heard BA cursing under his breath. He had em dead to rights. "Face I think you owe me one or two, and I'm only asking for one."

"You are so cheating right now." Face said, deflating. Murdock knew he had him beat, he could see the triumph in the pilots eyes.

"Coming from you I'll take that as a compliment Faceman." Murdock stood up triumphant. Yeah he'd had to play his hand, but it was a winning one. He drank down the last of his beer and tossed the bottle with perfect aim into the wastebasket. "So you guys want to meet a princess?"


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: Durp a durpadurp.**

**Authors Note: Ask and ye shall receive. I got inspired thanks to the reviews. I loves you all and so does Murdock and so does Sam. And so another chapter. I hope you like how this one turned out. I wasn't too sure and then boom, Murdock took on brain chomping duties and here you go. Reviews help fuel the brain chomping. I'm glad you love my Murdock, I love him too.**

**Chapter 18**

Samantha had never realized how awesome it was to be able to shower without being timed before. She greedily used every bit of hot water she could and got herself good and pink before she was done. It took a minute or two for her glasses to clear up from all the steam. She blow dried her hair with the room's tiny hair dryer and then scrubbed her teeth before using the rest of the toiletry kit that Murdock had provided.

She didn't have any make-up, but Sam figured that was the least of her worries. She just looked really pale and that wasn't going to change anytime soon. So she pulled on her newly acquired clothes and with a wry grin pulled on the baseball cap. She walked back into the main part of the room and took her Cons from their box and started pulling them on when there was a knock at the door. She froze, and her eyes got huge behind her glasses. Should she say hello?

"Hey it's just me…don't fling a lamp or the TV at me okay?" Murdock's voice came through the door and she let out a breath of relief.

"Thank you for letting your presence be known sir." She replied and quickly finished putting on her shoes.

The door opened and Murdock came in followed by two other men who she assumed were BA and Face. The bigger of the two was a large African American with a Mohawk (which was just random) and a displeased expression. He wasn't just big he was huge and seemed to make the room feel half its size. He stood near the corner by the door and simply glared. The other man was, in a way, his exact opposite. Dirty blonde, well styled hair and huge movie star blue eyes were all complemented by a tan, healthy build. When those blue eyes fell on her he grinned a smile that would be the envy of every dentist. Sam knew a few girls who would have passed out at that moment. But Sam knew the type after having seen them in college. The guy screamed "player".

Murdock smoothly scooted by Face and slid next to where Sam stood. He'd noticed she was wearing his hat and that made him happy and caused a funny little tickle in his stomach. She looked good in GI Joe. Then he noticed Face and that damn grin he always got around women…it didn't matter if they were married, old, young, hell…he wasn't even sure if he minded them playing for the other team. If it was a female Face just couldn't help it. But Murdock sure as hell could.

"Princess lemme introduce you to my compadres here." He gestured to the large guy in the corner. "That big lump of sunshine is BA. I told you about him before."

BA's dark eyes narrowed and Sam saw a glint of teeth from the snarl he was just barely holding in check. She gave him a little wave. "Hi…" He grunted in response or maybe growled was a better term.

Murdock gave BA a huge grin. At least he wasn't punching the wall. That was good. The pilot turned and nodded towards his other teammate. "And this is Face." He said not too terribly enthusiastic.

Sam held out her hand to shake his and the smoothy with the grin raised it to his lips and kissed her knuckles. "Hi Princess, last time we met I didn't get to say hello properly."

There was another growl from somewhere and Sam was pretty positive it didn't come from BA's side of the room. But in any event she shook her head at the man with the megawatt smile. "I'm not a princess, and the last time we met I hopefully didn't drool on you. But I wanted to thank you for getting me out of that place. All of you actually…I may not have been nuts when they put me in there, but it was starting to happen."

Face gave her a wink. "You wouldn't be the first gal to drool over me." He said it jokingly but Sam knew the guy realized just how hot he was. Or would be to many a girl, but to Sam that fact only dampened whatever appeal might have been there. And there was that growling again…

"As hard as that is to believe I do want to thank you. You got me out of a bad situation and that means a lot." Sam told him and managed to get her hand from his. At her comment she thought she heard Murdock choking on something. She turned and glanced at him to see his green eyes sparkling.

Face glanced over at Murdock and couldn't help but inwardly laugh. There was a distinct little bit of jealousy in the air which seemed more than a little strange coming from the pilot. Or maybe he was just being over protective of his "princess." Face wondered if he might have a bit of fun with this since Murdock was basically blackmailing them into helping with this job. But Sam seemed like a nice girl, and far be it from Face to leave a damsel in distress. "Well we'd be remiss in our duties as Murdock said if we didn't help you." Face's gave her one of his "looks", a half smile and penetrating stare.

Sam was a little thrown by that. What the hell with the smolder? She shook her head again. "You didn't have to and you didn't know me from Adam. So thank you for sticking your necks out for me."

"We did it because of the flying fool over there." BA spoke at last and gestured with a nod at Murdock. "It wasn't planned."

Sam felt Murdock's arm go around her waist as though he was worried the bluster of the big guy might make her run. It wasn't necessary but it was nice gesture. "Hey now…" Murdock said, "Fate doesn't need planning. That's why it's fate."

Face succeeded in not rolling his eyes, but only just. He didn't bother to see if BA managed. He knew better. Once again trying to keep the peace he gestured for Sam to sit down and she did, followed closely by Murdock. Face took one of the chairs that mirrored the ones in his room and BA of course stayed standing by the door. "Murdock gave us the rundown of your problem." Face began. "I'm sorry for the loss of your father."

Sam saw that this was said in complete sincerity. The guy did have a heart and she appreciated that. It took a second to manage the sudden lump in her throat at the thought of her dad. "Thank you…but I told Lancelot that I didn't want to involve you in this." She didn't even think about what she'd called him.

Murdock took that opportunity to speak up. "And I told you that it'd my duty to keep you safe and get you out of this mess. That's what's going to happen."

Face tried not to laugh at the nickname. "Easy Lancelot…" He told the pilot and would be knight, and then he turned back to the girl in question "Samantha…"

"You can call me Sam." She told him, anything to cut down on the princess moniker. This garnered her another grin, which seemed to be something he did often.

"Sam," Face continued noticing Murdock scoot a bit closer to the girl who was sitting next to him on the hotel bed. "You need help and that's what we do. So we're going to get you out of this mess, just like Lancelot over there said."

"Damn fool might be a royal pain but he ain't no knight." BA added while keeping his post by the door.

Sam managed not to laugh as Murdock shot another glare at the big guy looking more than a little offended. The movie star once again played peacekeeper.

"BA do you mind? We've got enough to worry about without stirring the proverbial pot okay?" Face glanced over at BA and the big man huffed and shut up. He turned back to Sam and Murdock. "Before we can start this though we've got to meet up with our boss who's on his way back from a little job. Hopefully he'll be bringing us some good news, and then we can focus on getting you out of your fix."

Murdock glanced over at BA and then back at Samantha. "That means we're going for a road trip." He told her, smiling.

Sam looked a little surprised. "I'm going with you?"

The pilot nodded. "I have to keep an eye on you don't I?" He gave her that crooked grin again.

She didn't know about being stuck in a car for untold hours with the big guy or even the movie star (as she'd dubbed him in her head.) One guy looked ready to deck anything that moved, and the movie star looked ready to do something else with anything that moved. "Okay…" she didn't have many options though so she had to go with it.

Face nodded. "Good, then its settled. We'll be leaving in the next half an hour. And as I've already promised Mr. Personality over there we'll get lunch on the road." He stood up and gave Samantha one more big smile and followed BA out the forcefully opened door. Face shut it with a much lighter touch.

Sam was staring at the floor while Murdock stood up and started gathering up the few things he had brought with him. He noticed she wasn't saying much. She'd taken off her baseball cap and it sat on the pillow next to her. "Hey Princess, you okay? I promise BA isn't that bad…he's just a sore loser." He placed the bag of chocolate in his small duffle that Face had brought along.

Samantha sighed and looked over at the pilot who came to sit down next to her again. "It's not that Lancelot."

"Is it Face? I mean yeah he can be a bit much too…" Murdock didn't know what had come over him when Face had started his…well…being Face routine. He'd expected it but damn he'd really not liked it when he'd snagged her hand and puckered up. He may have chipped a tooth with how hard he'd ground his teeth to keep his mouth shut.

"No…it's not…it's…" She didn't know how to describe it. It was just overwhelming at the moment. She was still coming to terms with all this stuff.

"Is it me? Did I do something?" Murdock's voice took on a frantic pitch and he suddenly looked horrified that he'd done something wrong.

"No!" She turned and grabbed his hand. Sam made sure he saw it wasn't him either. In fact he was the only stable thing in this whole mess…which wasn't staying a lot for the mess she was in. She looked him square in the eye. "No Lancelot you haven't done anything wrong. I'm just still taking this all in okay? I'm getting ready to drive somewhere in a car to who knows where with two guys I just met. One of them looks ready to pummel into hamburger the first person who looks at him wrong and the other one looks like belongs on the cover of GQ. It's a little surreal…on top of all the other bizarre that my life has become." Sam sighed heavily and saw that he was watching her with one of those unreadable expressions again.

She managed half a smile as she found herself trying once again to figure out the color of green his eyes were. This close they looked more emerald. "Obi Wan Kenobi you're my only hope." She said and rested her head on his shoulder.

Murdock took a breath, realizing he'd not done so since he'd been scared he'd done something to upset her. Her hair smelled sweetly of citrus with just the slightest bit of curry and engine oil that the hat had left behind. Somehow his nose was buried in her hair and he didn't know how that had happened. His arm was really trying to convince him to let it wrap around her shoulders but he told it no. He wasn't Face. He wasn't going to paw her like some uncouth ruffian. "I'm a knight but not a Jedi Knight." He told her, his voice coming out a lot more like a whisper than he'd intended and right into her ear on a warm breath of southern honey air.

Sam pulled back to look up at him and he saw those swirly eyes were looking at him strangely. He wanted to pluck her glasses off her nose so he could see them clearly, try to see if they really did swirl around like clouds like he thought they did. They were like the sky he loved so much he realized and he thought for probably the hundredth time that day how wrong it was she was afraid to fly. How could someone filled with the sky be afraid to fly?

"All you need is a light saber." She told him and tried to shake off the fact that his voice had made her feel way too…something. He was her friend that was it. And she couldn't…he wasn't…he was her friend and that was that. What the hell was wrong with her?

"I've got something better than force powers and a light saber." He told her and because he just couldn't help it, let his let his fingers reach up and brush along her hair just above her ear. When his fingers pulled back he was holding a Hershey's Kiss dangling from them. It was an easy trick and he felt dirty even taking that much of a liberty with her. Oh well, just add it to the list of things he felt guilty for. It was a long list, what was another one?

"Okay, scratch that better than a Jedi." She told him and he dropped the Hershey's Kiss in her hand with a smile. She unwrapped it and popped it in her mouth. "These aren't the calories you're looking for." She said and swallowed happily.

Murdock's expression grew serious again. "You know you're safe with me right?" He asked her, his voice taking that deeper tone.

Samantha nodded, "Yes I know I am." She trusted him and that was that.

He squeezed her hand which he was still holding. "And you know you can trust the team. We're all Rangers. This is what we do Samantha. They won't hurt you. And I'm not going to let anything hurt you. So don't be afraid until I tell you there's something to be afraid about. Cause when that happens…that means things are bad."

Sam nodded again and told herself to listen to him and not be afraid. When this part of his personality came out it always made her hair seem to stand on end. "I…I understand." She replied.

Murdock's gaze searched her face. She was still scared, he could tell…but she was getting better at dealing with it. He could tell that too. That Ranger part of his brain was trying to get her toughened up. She needed to be to face down whatever was waiting for them. And even though he wasn't going to let anything or anyone get close enough to her to touch her, she was still going to have to deal with the fact her brother had been okay with her being killed. Not to mention whoever else may have sold her out. Murdock knew from experience that question typically had an answer that kneed you right in the gut.

He leaned over and picked up her cap from the pillow. "Good, then we need to get ready to vamoose." Murdock said brightly and popped the hat on her head, adjusting it to his liking. "Yep...stylish as heck." He stood and pulled her to stand next to him. "Go and get packed up now ya hear. We've got some driving to do, and I need to figure if Face brought my traveling music."

Sam nodded and almost dazedly headed to the bathroom to grab her things. The mood swings were still dizzying. As she put her few items in one of the plastic bags she heard him say on his way out the door. "Hey Princess, you ever listen to Meatloaf?"


	19. Surprise Authors Note

Please don't beat me for this not being a chapter. But Wow. You guys just pushed Lord of Lunacy over the highest number of reviews I've ever gotten for a story.

So thank you for that! In celebration I'm posting this beautiful artwork my friend Danni did of Murdock and Samantha.

Check my profile for the link that I've added!

You all rock!

Thank you!

Jessica


	20. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: I own the DVD and the doll as I've said. Is Sharlto for sale? If so I need to go auction off a kidney, I have a spare. Same for Brad Cooper or Liam…or hell even Rampage. **

**Authors Note: You guys are amazing. Special thanks to the ones coming out of the woodwork to tell me they've never commented before but they had to on this story. That means a hell of a lot. **

**This is a short chapter, but a fun one. I'll have more soon, I promise. Time is my enemy. But I'll defeat it. Also, just a funny aside: I completely forgot the jails morgue attendant guy was wearing a Meat Loaf t-shirt in the movie. I just like Meat Loaf and thought Murdock would be a fan too since its theatrical crazy rock and roll. So yay, I share a brain with the movie.**

**Chapter 19**

When Sam walked outside with Murdock to find a mini-van was the teams mode of transportation she was surprised. She was expecting something far more intimidating. Maybe a Humvee or something…black and sporty. As it was, the mini-van was roomie and comfortable and she had no room to complain. She saw in the back where most suburban moms would store their kid's sports equipment or groceries were two large plastic black totes and four large nylon black duffle bags.

BA was driving it appeared and Face took shotgun. Murdock bowed and opened the sliding door for her. She grinned at the gesture and got inside, shoving her small bag of items into the corner and settling into her seat. She hooked her seatbelt and watched as Murdock hopped inside and shut the door. He buckled his seatbelt and she noticed BA was glaring at him in the rearview. From what she knew of the man so far, he glared at Murdock a lot, so this wasn't anything new.

"It's not right man." The big guy grumbled and sighed heavily.

Face took a drink from his cup of coffee. He needed more caffeine if he was going to make it through this day, he already knew. It was his second cup of the day. He'd brush his teeth again when they hit the restaurant. He couldn't have his secret weapon, aka his smile, getting stained and not be as pearly white as a cloud. "Boscoe, you know if you don't he's just going to throw a fit. Take one for the team man." Face said as he pulled out an MP3 player and started fitting his rather large headphones into it.

"It's alright for you. You don't have to hear it. I'm the driver, I can't be wearing headphones. If I'm driving I should be able to pick the tunes, not the wacko in the back seat man." Boscoe gestured towards the back with his thumb.

Samantha was watching the squabble and trying not to laugh. It was like watching a group of siblings on a family vacation…not hardened vets who had put their life on the line more often than they could count. She glanced over at Murdock who looked unconcerned that the two men in the front of the van were talking about him. He had a slight smirk on his face. He glanced over at her and gave her a wink.

"Higher rank." He pointed to himself and said low enough that the two in the front couldn't hear him.

Sam nodded and tried really hard not to laugh. Yeah, she had a feeling it wasn't so much to do with his rank as it was what the outcome would be if he wasn't allowed his way.

Face sighed, hooking the headphones around his neck. "BA you know it's just until the boss man gets back. He's easier to deal with when the old guy is here. You can tough it out till then."

Boscoe's glare increased in ferocity. "So says the man with the ear protection. You know I'mma gonna make you pay for this. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow…but you gonna be paying me back for what I'm about to do here."

Face sighed yet again as BA turned back to the steering wheel, mumbling something about ice picks and ear drums. As he turned the key in the ignition Face put his headphones on. Sam was wondering what was about to happen as the first strains of "Bat Out of Hell" started to play over the speakers. The guitar was far too familiar.

She glanced over at Murdock who had a huge grin plastered on his face. He turned to her and Sam felt a bit nervous. "Traveling music Guinevere, never had a gal along to duet with." He paused for a minute as if realizing there might be a kink in this plan. "You've heard this before right?"

Sam actually looked offended. "Of course I've heard this before. I wore out the cassette when I was growing up twice."

Murdock looked impressed and the grin came back. "BA skip to track six would ya?" He called over to Boscoe who was slumped so far over the steering wheel it looked like he was trying to crawl over it. Most likely through the windshield and to freedom Sam guessed. Instead he jabbed a large finger on the stereo a few times and the rocking beginning of "Paradise by the Dashboard Light" started. Murdock raised an eyebrow in challenge. "Let's see what ya got princess." He told her and then started singing along to Mr. Loaf.

Samantha was slightly mortified that she was expected to sing along too. Not that she didn't sing in her car or alone in her house, but this was…in front of people. Plus BA looked like he was really considering crashing the van. But as she watched Murdock getting into the music and actually not being half bad in the voice department she decided to hell with it. With everything going on in her life, this wasn't half as surreal as the last few months. She'd nearly been killed and still had a hit out on her. So why not live in the moment like her knight of the realm. When the time came she let loose with the lyric "Well it's cold and lonely in the deep dark night!" Lancelot glanced over at her beaming and then both of them together sang "I can see Paradise by the Dashboard light!"

Up front BA considered the guard rail of the freeway overpass.

The song continued and both of them did their parts. Murdock was spot on in his opinion and his princess was flawless. At the end as she told him to "stop right there!" and asked if he'd love her forever he discovered he had a hard time holding back a resounding yes. That had never happened before. Of course he'd never had a girl doing the song with him…the last time it had been Face at a karaoke bar and it was after many, many bottles of Tecate beer. Just didn't compare to Samantha singing it.

As it was they finished the song and thanks to its length they were pulling into the parking lot of the Indian restaurant just as the two of them proclaimed how they were "waiting for the end of time to hurry up and arrive."

When it was over Samantha was giggling like a lunatic. "Oh my god that was fun." She said and fell back in the seat. "Didn't think I had it in me."

"I wished you didn't." BA grumbled having turned off the engine and escaping the van.

Murdock shot him a look, which the big guy didn't see. Face was putting away his anti-noise noise gear. He was watching the two songbirds in the back while doing so and trying not to grin.

"Ignore BA; he's tone deaf and dumb. More dumb than deaf." Murdock said giving her another of those crazy crooked smiles. "You rocked the socks off of that."

Samantha found herself actually blushing a bit. "Thanks…I don't normally let her rip like that. But you know…when in Rome."

"Oh yeah, they were alright. One hit wonders. Pretty song though." He said and started humming the chorus of "The Promise" while unbuckling his seatbelt and then opening the door.

Sam shook her head thinking she might actually have found someone who appreciated 80's music as much as she did. Then she was terrified because no one should like 80's music that much. Murdock was holding out a hand to help her down. Once again the gallant gesture made her smile and she was blushing again. This was getting straight up stupid, she thought as she took his hand and jumped out. He kept hold of her hand though, even as he shut the door and turned back to her with a grin.

"Duets are just not as good with Face. I mean, he's not terrible." The pilot was explaining as he hooked her arm through is just like he did in Bay Ridge. "Just…yeah…I wouldn't suggest singing "Jackson" with him or anything."

Samantha laughed as he held the door open and escorted her in. "I'd pay money to see you two do a June and Johnny number. Extra if you get him in a skirt."

Murdock shook his head, his eyes wide and looking around nervously. "Don't ever mention the skirt. That was just the one time, and we were both really drunk." Sam nearly doubled over before they made it to the table where BA sat sullenly and Face was browsing the menu.

It was a booth and each man sat on opposite sides. It was obvious to Face which side Murdock would be sitting on, or at least planning to. BA wasn't thrilled with him right now, and Face got the very obvious read from the pilot that he didn't want his "princess" too close to any competition….even if he didn't realize it. Face figured he'd earned some payback since he'd have to pay his own back to BA for subjecting him to Murdock's musical talents.

So Face looked up at Samantha and gave her what he called "the dazzler." Wide eyes, huge smile, and then he patted the plastic covered cushion next to him. "Have a seat Princess. I'll show you what looks yummy." He could almost hear the grinding of Murdock's teeth. Oh yes, this would be great.


	21. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: Sharlto owns my soul, not the other way around.**

**Author's Note: New chapter soon to be followed by a newer new chapter. Yes, twofer weekend here at Because damn it I love the A-team.**

**Reviews are crack and I love them almost as much as I love curry (and Murdock) Feed me please.**

**Chapter 20**

Sam was more than a little dumbstruck. This was quite possibly a lunch that might seem at home in a David Lynch movie, only with less slimy things. Murdock sat next to BA who was glaring at him from the side. But she figured the pilot didn't notice since he seemed to be too busy glaring at the movie star next to her who'd decided to start showering her with attention. He'd immediately put his arm behind her on the back of the booth and was pointing out things on the menu while leaning closely next to her. Granted he smelled really, really good. But girls like her didn't have guys like him fawning over them. And this was defiantly fawning.

"If you're looking for something hot, then this is defiantly the dish for you." Face practically whispered into her ear.

Sam turned fifteen shades of pink she was sure, and there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it. Even though she knew KNEW the guy was a player she was still a female. She tried to scoot a little away from him wishing for the hundredth time that she was sitting next to Lancelot. When she looked over at him she saw he was glaring with a fierce expression in her direction and his jaw was twitching. Okay maybe she didn't want to be sitting next to him either.

She sighed and turned to find the movie star's face right next to hers again. "I think the four little fire balls next to the name kind of give that away." She told him pointedly.

Face grinned, giving her a wink. "Just trying to help you on the way to satisfaction darlin."

Sam rolled her eyes. The fact that the cheesy pick-up lines were still charming coming from him made her feel sorry for the type of girl she could see being his type. They wouldn't be able to stand a chance. He did smell damn good though.

She scooted a little further away for her own good. "I'm not so much a flame my mouth off girl when it comes to the Indian cuisine. I prefer flavor and personality over a quick burn." For some reason she hazarded a glance over at Murdock as she said this. He was starting to play around with the steak knife on the table, flipping it in his hand and doing some pretty amazing catches and twirls…and he was still glaring at Face.

Sam flipped through her menu which was the same thing BA was doing. "Where's the coconut curry…" She and the big guy asked in unison. They glanced up at one another and Sam grinned at him. Well, she and the bruiser had something in common after all.

Murdock's ears perked up at her choice. He'd been envisioning that scene in Aliens where the android did the knife trick with the guys hand, only in his mind it was Face's hand and he was the android doing the crazy stabby stab around his fingers. So Guinevere had taste in cuisine too…which he wasn't surprised by. She was royalty of course so that should come with the pedigree. And just how good an aim did he have when it came to Face's hand where it rested on her shoulder?

BA found what he was looking for on the menu. He glanced over at the gal with the glasses. "It's on page three." He said gruffly.

"Thank you." Sam replied and gave him another quick grin. She scanned the page and found the coconut curry towards the bottom. As she was looking at the description something occurred to her. She slumped back in her chair. "Crap…"

Face looked at her strangely from the above the top of his own menu. "What is it? Onions? Yeah they are in everything."

"No toast points." BA grumbled. "Only time I get those is when the fool here makes em."

Murdock actually smiled at that but then noticed Sam was still looking strange. "What's wrong Guinevere?"

Sam took off her glasses and rubbed between her eyes. "Nothing…I'm…I'm not hungry." She sighed heavily. "I'll be back in a little bit." She stood up and headed towards the entrance.

"What's the deal?" Face asked looking confused.

Murdock took a second longer to ponder and then quickly headed off to where she'd gone without a word. BA sat silently then glanced over at Face. "You macking on the fool's gal is not cool, you know that right?"

"Aww c'mon Boscoe," Face said, "you know I'm just playing."

BA shook his head. "You always playing, that's what a playa does. Murdock don't know about that kinda game man."

Face sat back in the booth and smiled. "That's obvious. I was waiting for that knife to thud into the wall by my head. "

"You noticed that huh?" BA put his menu down. "I wondered."

"You think we should go after them?" Face glanced towards where Sam had run off.

"Nah, fool will bring her back." BA sighed, a look of resignation on his face. "He got it bad, he just don't know it."

"Question is what will he do when he gets it?" Face chuckled at the thought and surprisingly Boscoe did too.

"Don't put that picture in my head man." The big guy said as a waitress came over.

Face turned the dazzler at the pretty girl, saw her nearly drop the tray of waters she was carrying and realized then that Murdock's princess hadn't actually responded in the positive to any of his blatant attempts to charm her. At that moment it hit him…maybe Murdock wasn't the only one who had it bad.

Samantha felt beyond frustrated at this point. She'd realized while looking at the menu that she had no money for food. She'd somehow forgotten that little fact. Was she supposed to let the lothario next to her buy her lunch? Or let Lancelot just pay for everything? The situation was flat out stupid and she would have screamed if she didn't think she'd be packed right back up and taken to Bay Ridge by the nice man who was smiling and standing next to the register. It just reminded her yet again what sort of cluster fuck her life had evolved into. It irritated and embarrassed her. She didn't like feeling like a pariah.

She turned and pushed open the swinging door and stepped outside. The sky was overcast and it fit her mood. She'd just walk around the parking lot or something while the guys ate. It would be less embarrassing and she could stand to skip a few meals anyway.

As she was heading around the corner of the restaurant she heard the door hastily open and then the sound of someone running made her turn to find Murdock screeching to a halt next to her.

"Okay spill it, what's wrong?" He managed to pant out.

Samantha shoved her hands into the pockets of her jeans. "Nothing Lancelot, go eat. I'll be fine."

The pilot wasn't convinced and he wasn't leaving her alone. "You suck at lying Guinevere, if I might be so bold. I know you like Indian food, so it's not the cuisine. And I know it's not the lack of toast points…although yes, they do add certain flair to any dish."

Sam shook her head at his rambling logic. "Murdock go back and eat your lunch."

His lips thinned and he frowned. "I know you aren't passing up honest to goodness food after the days of subpar poop on a shingle level dining that you've been made to eat…you've got more sense than that. At least you should have more sense than that…granted we did just break out of a mental ward."

She realized he wasn't going to listen so she let out a growl and turned on him. "I don't have any money to pay for it okay? I just realized while I was sitting in there that my mother and brother have taken over my bank account. I have no money, no ID, no nothing right now. And while you know….surprise breakfast this morning was awesome and thank you for that, I shouldn't have to rely on you for everything! It's not right! I'm not using you like that!"

While she'd ranted Murdock had gone very still. And now while she caught her breath after venting out everything she realized his gaze had turned flinty. She'd been around him long enough to know this wasn't exactly a good thing. He stood there quietly and raised one brow. "Are you done?" He asked her, and his voice had taken that serious tone which matched the flinty stare. Sam had a sinking feeling in her stomach.

Her eyes fell to the ground, noticing an empty package of Big League Chew trampled into the pavement. "Yes…" She replied, the word sounding tiny.

"Freak outs are allowed you know… they come with the territory. In fact I encourage freak outs when warranted. They take the edge off." He walked around her, his tone lighter and matter of fact. "But here's the thing princess…" The pilot turned and narrowed his eyes at her, coming to stand only a couple inches away from her. "This is not a warranted freak out. This is just plain stupid. Also…using me? You think you're using me?"

He actually sounded both hurt and angry. And Murdock realized he was both those things. And that annoyed him. Hadn't he made it clear this was his duty? How many times did he need to explain this? She wasn't a dummy, she had brains. That was part of the reason he liked her. He needed to nip this in the bud right the heck now because he couldn't have her getting all stompy and ranty every time she needed help because she needed a lot of it. So this would just get damn inconvenient.

And plus it really did bother him she thought he was being used. Didn't she think he had enough sense well…at least in that regard…to know when someone was using him? There weren't many practical uses for him actually. Murdock was, what he supposed would be called, specialized.

He might be crazy, but he wasn't a moron. It was his choice as to what he did. The only person who had authority to tell him what to do was The Colonel and above him was god almighty. That was pretty much it to Murdock's way of thinking.

Samantha felt that stare of his like a heavy weight on her shoulders. She finally looked up at him and it was a hundred times worse. How was he able to do that with just a stare? It must be a military thing she guessed. She swallowed nervously. "I don't want to take advantage of you okay…" She said and wished she could take it back as soon as she'd said it.

"Advantage? Really?" He took a step closer, getting good and steamed now.

Sam took a step backwards and felt the wall behind her. Okay now she was cornered. This was just getting better and better. "That's not…damn it…look…I don't want you thinking that's how I am okay?" She'd had enough bullying and he wasn't going to get to do it either. Behind her glasses her eyes flashed grey and blue, the green flecks swallowed up and meshing with the rest. "You and your team, I don't want you guys thinking I'm some sort of…bimbo or whatever that just lets people do stuff for her. Romeo in there is probably used to some blonde begging him to rescue her."

"How many times do I have to explain this to you? This is my job, our job. We help people that need help." Murdock was nearly nose to nose with her now. So close he could smell the mint from her toothpaste on her breath. Maybe it was more cinnamon...he supposed there was only one way to be sure about that. But that wasn't important right then. What was important was she got it through the four or five layers of skull that she apparently had. He thought he was the only one gifted with that little mutant trait.

"Romeo…" here he paused, his teeth grinding for a moment, "and Boscoe are not going to think you're a bimbo because you're in a bad spot that was out of your control. They want to help you, even if BA is Mister Personality right now…that's just BA. And the Colonel will too. They listen to me even if they like to tune me out sometimes…a lot like you do apparently." He glanced heavenward as if for a sign.

"I don't like taking your money." Samantha managed to say and was rewarded by a snarl of frustration from him, he took another step closer and Sam found herself smack against the wall and Murdock glowering at her. He could be damn intimidating when he needed to be.

"You need to eat. I am not going to let you starve. That would be me not doing my duty or my job. Remember that discussion? Remember what I told you? That's not going to happen and I don't like people trying to tell me not to do my job. That is in fact what you are doing right now. Plus, you are keeping me from vast amounts of curry and lamb and rice. And that also does not make the knight happy. Not one bit. A happy knight is a fed till bursting with carbs and things that used to eat grass in a field knight." He'd rattled that all off quickly and was now breathing heavily.

Plus he was as close to her as he'd been when they'd danced that tango in the rec room. The brims of their baseball caps were knocking into one another. Murdock realized by the way her eyes were the size of hubcaps behind her glasses that he'd scared her good and proper, plus she looked a bit pissed off. And damned pretty, as well as ready to bolt like Sasquatch out of the parking lot. That he couldn't let happen, even if she fought him…which he hoped she wouldn't. And yeah, he probably was coming on strong. But he didn't like what she was saying or thinking. It bothered him more than a lot.

Murdock took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He needed to calm down before he did something he'd regret like punching the brick wall of the building (which would really freak her out, really hurt, and probably break some fingers in his hand) or the other thing his slightly scrambled brains were telling him to do which would no doubt freak her out too and also involved the wall. But that would be way more fun and enjoyable and a lot less painful. Yeah, he needed food right away.

"Okay, do we understand everything now? Do you get the deal? Do I need to write it out in long hand? Short hand? Latin? No more hissy fits okay princess?" He asked taking a step back from her.

Samantha nearly stumbled when he stepped away from her. She'd been equal parts angry, scared, and transfixed as he'd rambled off his tirade. This close she could make out the fine lines in his face distinctly, see the grey just showing up in the stubble on his chin. His eyes had her pinned to the wall, like two dark green lasers. When he moved back from her it was as though he'd been gripping hold of her and then released her suddenly.

He was right of course. She hated to admit it, and she hated being this powerless. Sam figured he knew how that felt though…but it didn't make it any easier. She hated not being able to offer anything back in return for his help. It was only fair. "Fine." She replied and it sounded petulant even to her. Sam let out a growl of disgust directed at herself and saw that the pilot was looking at her with a wry twist to his lips.

"No running off anymore?" He asked her, one dark brow raised beneath the red brim of his hat.

"Fine." She repeated, crossing her arms in front of her chest. She knew she was acting like a five year old but she couldn't stop herself. She felt as helpless as one, might as well get the benefits.

Murdock couldn't fight off the grin any longer. Now that he'd got her to agree to stop being a dummy she had apparently turned into a kindergartner. God, she was actually pouting a little. And that just made him start looking at her mouth again. And that led back to the path of the ideas he'd had regarding the wall of the restaurant. What the hell was wrong with him? "Lord give me strength." He muttered under his breath and then said aloud "I'll have them give you a bib if you keep acting like a baby….baby."

"I don't like feeling helpless." She said, letting her arms fall to her sides.

He shook his head at her and after a second offered her his arm as he always did. "You aren't helpless Guinevere. You're as strong a gal as I've ever met. And knights can't lie…we burst into flame or something equally biblical if we do." He smiled widely at her. "So can we go back inside like nice people and glut ourselves into a currycoma now? Or do I have to throw you over my shoulder and embarrass Boscoe? Cause really either way would be fine with me. "

"It would break your spine to throw me over your shoulder Lancelot." Sam pointed out, shaking her head as a grin spread over her face. She slid her arm through his and he tucked it closely next to him.

"Baby I've already carried you out of a loony bin. You ain't hurt my back yet." He told her as they walked through the door. The guy at the register over heard him and Sam saw that faux smile he'd been wearing falter for a moment. She couldn't help but laugh.

When they got back to the table Face was drinking a beer and Boscoe was sipping at a glass of soda. "Good of you guys to join us." Face said gesturing to the space next to him. "Everything okay?"

Murdock's eyes narrowed at his friend and he let go of Samantha's arm and slid into the spot next to Face. "Everything's tip top Face. But if you try to put your arm around me I might have to break it off. I'm not that kind of girl."

Sam chuckled and BA nearly choked on his soda as Face scooted a little closer to the wall. Samantha sat down next to BA. The waitress came back and took their orders. Murdock ordered something called a Naga Curry while Sam stayed with the tried and true Coconut Curry that wouldn't destroy her taste buds. "What the heck is Naga Curry?" She asked the pilot.

"It's hot and not for the faint of heart." Murdock replied taking off his baseball cap and shoving it in his jacket pocket. "But it's got personality and heck of a lot of flavor." He added with a pointed glance at Face. He turned back to Sam. "I'll let you try a bite if you're feeling adventuresome."

The food arrived and the smell was like paradise. Everyone dug in with gusto and Sam noticed that BA had enough to feed a small family and he'd already put half of it away. Face was eating something that had tomatoes in it and he'd actually put a napkin under his chin to protect his clothes. Murdock had asked for a pitcher of water to be brought with his meal and he was already on his second glass of it.

He noticed her watching him and after taking a gulp of water asked "So you wanna try it?"

She had already made a healthy dent in her plate but she looked warily at the mass of rice and tender pieces of meat covered in curry sauce her knight had in front of him. "It's going to kick my head isn't it?" Sam asked.

"That's part of the fun." Murdock told her and scooped up a forkful, making sure to get enough of the sauce on it to his liking. No reason to do it halfway.

"You crazy Murdock." BA said, finishing his second plate and grabbing a third. "I can smell that heat from here. Burn your tongue off and maybe a few teeth."

"Aw Boscoe, you've got no sense of adventure, or at least it's a limited one. You need to learn to live a bit more dangerously." Murdock glanced over at Face who was shaking his head. "What?"

"Nothing, I didn't say anything." Face held up his hands in surrender. He wasn't getting in a discussion with Murdock about food. He'd lived through that before and had nearly lost his eyebrows when it was something they disagreed on. Plus he was still leery about the whole knife thing. The pilot did have a fork in his hand.

The knight turned back to his princess and smiled. "Live a little baby, I won't steer ya wrong." He held the fork out in front of her. Sam looked at it dubiously and then at him.

"If I lose my sense of taste I blame you. I have witnesses." She told him.

"You hanging out with this fool is proof you ain't got no taste already." Boscoe said around a mouthful of rice.

"Not nice BA." Face admonished, trying not to laugh.

"Wit thy name is Boscoe." Murdock shot him a glare and then glanced back to Sam. He gave her an encouraging grin. "Trust me."

Okay he had her there. Saying a quick prayer that she'd still have her teeth, Sam leaned over and took the forkful of curried lamb and rice into her mouth. Face couldn't help but watch the action with a wistful expression. BA backed away in case she actually did start flailing in pain. Murdock carefully fed her the bite of curry making sure not to spill any. He felt a strange little thrill shoot through him at the fact she actually trusted him enough to try it, and the way her eyes didn't look away from his as she let him feed her. That made him nearly as warm as the curry did. Oh boy, he needed more water.

Sam chewed and the flavor started off being almost sweet. There was a bit of cinnamon, she could taste some cumin in there as well. It was rich and chaotic after a second as the heat hit the back of throat like a linebacker. It grew in warmth till her eyes were nearly watering behind her glasses. But the flavors were distinct even as it burned. It was tasty and complicated. In the back of her mind she thought to herself that it shouldn't be a surprise that her knight liked it. She swallowed it down, and then took a large drink of her diet soda which Lancelot had rolled his eyes at when she'd ordered it. He'd grumbled under his breath "ya don't need that damn fake sugar…" or something like that.

"Well? Whadya think?" Murdock was slightly worried she wouldn't like it. There was always the chance he could have read her wrong he supposed.

"That's sort of awesome." She said a bit breathless. Her mouth was still tingling.

Murdock's smile was huge and slightly smug as he glanced over at his teammates. He took another forkful and winked at her. "Your lips'll stop tingling in a second."


	22. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer: Read the last one, nothing has changed since then.**

**Authors Note: Okay, so I'm now officially upping the tension between Sam and Murdock. You can't be as close as these two are without it. So here you go. I love angst. It rules. I hope you like how I'm writing Face and BA. I'm always iffy about BA, but I think I did okay. Hannibal is coming soon I promise! Let me know what you think. Fluffy fluff is fun.**

**Chapter 21**

The as promised currycoma hit about an hour later. Boscoe was driving again and he looked behind him to notice that Murdock had finally, finally fallen asleep. Samantha was next to him staring out the window as they drove through yet another mile of non-descript freeway. BA took the chance and switched off the Journey CD and popped in some John Legend. Face was reading a paperback, Nora Roberts…his secret shame that only BA was allowed to know about.

When Sam noticed BA had switched over the CD she caught his eye in the review mirror and grinned at him, giving him a thumbs up. She scored major points with him then and he gave her the slightest smile back and a nod of his head.

Sam listened to the smooth voice coming over the speakers and zoned out for a while. Lancelot was out for the count. She had no doubt he'd been up for who knew how many hours. He seemed the type that would go, go, go and then crash for an entire day. She used to be able to do that, she thought and then sighed, settling back for what was going to be a long drive.

She must have dozed off or just really checked out because the next thing she remembered was Face gently shaking her shoulder. They'd stopped for gas it looked like. Sam rubbed her eyes behind her glasses and Face made a hushing gesture and pointed next to her. Murdock was still asleep and hadn't moved much in the interim. Sam glanced back at Face trying not to smile. The pilot looked peaceful and quiet, and that didn't seem natural for him.

"I figured you'd want to stretch your legs and powder your nose while the chance is here." The movie star said in a whisper.

"Oh hey, thanks." Sam told him and then carefully moved around the sleeping pilot to get out of the van. A tiny little sound of annoyance came from Murdock but he didn't wake up. Face was still perched on the single second row seat when Sam stepped down. She turned and looked at him strangely. "Aren't you coming?"

He gave her a lesser version of the dazzler and gestured towards Murdock. "He needs someone around in case he wakes up. Sometimes…sometimes he has bad dreams, when those happen he can wake up and it's so great." He spoke softly, and Sam noticed the graveness in his voice and the concern he had for his brother in arms was obvious. It made her once again realize there was more to the movie star than met the eye.

She nodded and told him thank you again, then headed off to find the restroom. After using the facilities and splashing some water on her face, Sam headed back out into the store proper. She ran into BA who was trying to figure out what sort of road grub they should get. "Red Vines." She told him and he grabbed a bag of those and a pillow sized back of Doritos.

"What you want to drink?" He led them over to the drink cooler. Sam went ahead and chose a liter sized Coke Zero and after a second grabbed a regular liter of Coke for Murdock. She guessed he was a Coke drinker. She helped BA with the carrying of loot. He'd also snagged a bag of Chips Ahoy's for himself and a couple of protein bars for "the pretty boy" as he called Face. Samantha laughed. The big guy was funny when he let down the badassatude.

They headed back out to the now fully gassed van. Face jumped out and took his bottle of green tea from Samantha with a grin and a nod. "He's still not moved. I think he said something about being up for five days this time, or close to it. That's a record I think."

Samantha felt guilt wash over her. She guessed that might have had something to do with her, but she really didn't want to know if it did. Her eyes looked to the ground.

Face noticed and chucked her gently under the chin. "Hey princess, don't worry about him. He'll be fine. He's used to that actually. I think a regular week of sleep might shock his body to death."

Sam glanced up at him, hefting the two bottles of soda in her arm. "Yeah I'll not worry, that's going to happen." She said shoving her baseball cap up a little and climbed into the back of the van. Once again she managed to get around the sleeping pilot without disturbing him. She shook her head, smiling slightly as he sighed in his sleep and turned towards her, burrowing further into his seat. Sam placed his bottle of Coke into the drink holder nearest him and did the same with her own.

BA switched out CD's again and this time Kanye West was coming through the speakers. He had the sound lower than normal, to help keep Murdock from being disturbed. The muted noise lulled Sam down to another zoning session. She stared at the fields zooming by; chin resting on her hand and taking drinks of Coke Zero.

"Baa baa's." She muttered as some of those fields would have sheep in them. She'd smile at that, something left over from her days as a little kid and traveling with her dad. Then she'd start thinking about her dad and the smile would leave her face and she'd have to fight back the tears threatening to spill out.

Sam glanced over at Murdock every so often to keep her mind from wandering to places she'd rather it not go. A few times she noticed he was talking, or at least muttering in his sleep. It was faint, less than a whisper, but she heard him. His lean face would tense up. She'd see his fingers curl into fists. Sam looked towards the front of the van and saw that his team mates hadn't noticed or couldn't hear him. So she would lean down and cautiously whisper "You're okay Murdock. You're safe. I won't let them hurt you." And she wouldn't she realized. It was obvious from the look in Face's eyes when he'd told her, something bad had happened to her knight to cause the nightmares that made him wake up "not good." She knew about nightmares. And her knight wasn't going to be hurt by the phantoms in his. Not if she had anything to say about it.

At the sound of her voice he quieted. It seemed to work and Samantha would see his muscles relax, his fingers unclench. One time he actually moved closer to her, his head falling onto her shoulder and resting there for a while. She didn't mind, god knew she'd leaned on him enough lately. Sam glanced up towards the front of the van again to see that BA was focused on the road still and that Face had passed out in the passenger seat, his jaw slack and a very non-health conscious Dorito hanging out of his mouth. She laughed softly at the sight, wishing she had a camera.

With no one watching she gave in to her temptation and very carefully let her fingers run through the pilot's hair, bits of it sticking up at random angles. She smoothed those bits out and heard one of those little sighs escape his lips. Sam grinned at the sound, a little flutter in her stomach making her pause. Regretfully she pulled away from him and in his sleep he frowned at the loss of warmth and comfort that she took with her. She made sure his head was resting against the seat back, and then got as far away as the other side of the seat would allow

Sam didn't know where her brain was, but it needed to start thinking a hell of a lot clearer. He was her friend and that was all. Plus he was a fugitive on the run from the government, who probably had access to hot spy chicks at every port in town. And who knew, she might be dead in a week or less. Plus, she'd told him she wasn't a bimbo. Sam groaned and realized she probably needed some sleep too. Her brain was rambling at this point, which was a sure sign.

BA cursed aloud and the van bounced hard as a pot hole the size of West Virginia was driven over. The shake and the shout from the front of the van caused Face to wake up choking and Murdock to shoot instantly awake a string of words coming from his mouth that sounded Swedish?

His green eyes were wide and he was looking around wildly for a full two seconds before he realized where he was. Sam had crammed herself against the side of the van and that's where he noticed her. She looked slightly guilty. That didn't seem right on either count…the being wedged as far away as she could get or the guilty look on her face. "Uh, hey…" He said eloquently.

"Hey. There's a Coke for you, I thought you might be thirsty." She said her voice tiny and pointed at the cup holder near him.

He looked down and noticed. "Oh thanks. Good choice."

"It might be a little warm. You've been asleep a while." She told him.

Murdock touched the side of the bottle while pulling out his cap from his jacket. It wasn't too warm yet to be gross. "Still chilly." He looked up front to see BA laughing at something and Face wiping at his mouth with a napkin. BA looked behind them and then groaned.

"Fool's awake." He muttered.

Face turned around and grinned. "Hey buddy, how was the nap?"

Murdock looked out the window and noticed that it was actually starting to grow dark. He'd been out a while. "Long apparently." He replied.

They made another stop an hour later. Murdock was unusually quiet, and he didn't even ask BA to change the CD he had in the dash. Alicia Keyes was pretty and not hard on the eyes either. He couldn't fault the choice. They combined getting fuel for the van with dinner. Although Face was grouchy about the food, burgers and fries was all they had. The wolfed down their burgers and even Face and BA noticed that something was off about their normally loud and excitable pilot. Sam didn't say anything much either.

Face headed over to the coffee area and got the biggest cup he could find. He was taking over for BA at the wheel. BA was finishing up the fueling of the mini-van. Murdock was loitering near the magazine rack and flipping through a copy of Entertainment Weekly. The guy with the big orange eyeball on the front was freaking him out. So was Sam's sudden lack of speech. He noticed her coming out of the bathroom and tossed the magazine back on the shelf and walked over to her. She was rolling her head on her shoulders and she looked pale, paler than normal at least.

"Hey princess," he said as he came to stand beside her. She had circles under her eyes again; he saw them through her glasses.

"Hey Lancelot." She smiled and it made him feel a little better. "I never knew how good a hamburger could taste until I hadn't had one for weeks. That thing had no right to be that yummy."

Murdock laughed. "Yeah, let me tell ya. When I was…detained…back in Iraq and then got out? I think I ate a whole cow before I was done. It's the little things you know?"

She nodded laughing despite the darker parts of what he was talking about. "I wouldn't call a whole cow little, but yeah I get it."

The pilot studied her for a moment longer. "You're tired Guinevere. I think you'd better conk out when we get back on the road."

Sam couldn't argue the fact. Her eyes were burning. And the food she'd just eaten was causing her to be even drowsier. "I don't think that will be hard."

The group headed back to the van, with Face settling into the driver's seat and BA getting shotgun. Sam climbed into the back followed by Murdock. Face's taste in music was far more agreeable to the pilot than most of BA's. So when Steve Ray Vaughn started playing he was more than okay with that.

About an hour into the drive BA was snoring loud enough that Murdock could hear it back where he sat. Face was singing along quietly and thrumming his fingers in time to the music. The pilot was trying to figure some things out in his scrambled head. Chaotic thoughts and the residual bad dreams he'd had that day were not a good combination. He took of his hat and started fiddling with the brim just to give his hands something to do. He longed for a coloring book and some Crayola's. He should have bought some when he had the chance. But coloring in the dark wasn't that easy, he'd learned that in Iraq too.

He pulled a few Hershey Kisses from the bag at his feet and popped one in his mouth and quickly followed it with two more. The chocolate helped a bit. He glanced over at his princess who had been asleep for the last twenty or more miles. She was still wearing the ball cap and that made him smile in the darkness. Blue looked good on her, course anything would. She was a pretty girl…despite what she obviously thought. Tough cookie too, also despite what she thought. He wished he'd had the chance to see her punch that bastard back in Bay Ridge. That would have done his heart some good.

When he heard her start to mumble in her sleep his attention was taken away from Face's wrong choice of lyrics during Crossfire. Murdock turned and saw that Sam was actually shaking, her knuckles were white and she was saying something. "Don't…stop…get off me…no..no…"

His eyes got a little wider and Murdock slid closer to her. "You're okay Samantha." He repeated the words only hours before she'd spoken to him, a fact he didn't know. "I've got ya baby…no one's gonna hurt ya." He said the words softly, his fingers finding hers in the dark where they lay between them on the seat. Yeah he really wanted to see her deck that monkey now.

Sam's head was starting to turn back and forth and Murdock could tell she was in the throes of a doozy. He reached up with his other hand cupped the back of her head, his thumb resting against her cheek. He ran the pad of his thumb along her skin. He didn't want her hurting herself. He'd had dreams where Face had to hold him back from bashing his own skull into the car window repeatedly. It wasn't always fun. He didn't want to wake her up, she needed rest. But really, this wasn't restful. This was hell. He knew the neighborhood. The choice was made for him though when she jerked awake and her swirly eyes looked up at him, wide and frightened from behind her glasses.

"You're okay baby." He told her gently. "See, nothing but me and the boys and about another four hundred miles of crappy scenery. It was just a dream, just a dream Samantha." He squeezed her hand.

Her breathing was quick, panicked. But his voice managed to cut through the hulking shadows that were on top of her. Big ugly shadows holding her down while the other shadows were dragging away her father from the bed she'd been sitting near into a darkness she couldn't see into. But she could hear the sounds coming out of it very clearly. Screams and laughter…horrible laughter, and sadly she recognized the screams.

"It was so real…" She said, the words coming out shaky. The dreams at Bay Ridge had been bad but this was awful.

Trauma was not his favorite thing in the world. And the mental variety really wasn't…but Murdock happened to be an expert in that kind. She'd have to deal with these for a while. He knew the routine. "It wasn't princess. See if it was real, I'd have handed whoever or whatever was making you scared their lungs by now." He held up his hand, wiggling his fingers and smiling. "See, no lungs."

Sam let out a little huff of air that might have been a laugh. She wiped at her eyes from behind her glasses. "I don't want to sleep anymore." She mumbled.

"You have to sleep baby, or you'll fall over. And that's just not good for your noggin." Murdock looked thoughtful. "You just need to get comfy." Without preamble he grabbed her hat off her head and shoved it in his jacket pocket then plucked her glasses off her nose.

"Hey I need those." She said in surprise.

"Not if your eyes are closed." He told her sitting back and throwing an arm over the back of the set. "Come here. This worked before if you remember correctly."

Sam was still in shock and not sure if this was a good idea. She gave him another of those dubious looks.

Murdock rolled his eyes. "Really, I'd offer you candy as incentive, but that would be creepy and give the wrong idea."

Sam sighed heavily, rolling her own eyes. She was too tired to argue with the lunatic. So she scooted closer and rested her cheek against his shoulder. Murdock let his arm fall loosely across her back and smiled. "Oh hey, no drooling on the jacket, its vintage." He felt her start pulling away and tightened his hold chuckling. "I'm kidding, kidding…it's not vintage, and you'll wind up drooling anyway." That garnered him a half-hearted slap to his chest which just made him laugh harder.

He knew the minute she was asleep because the warm breath on his neck turned steady and tickling and it was scented like Red Vines. The pilot knew he was just torturing himself with this. But damn it…he wasn't going to let her be afraid and freaked out without trying to help her. He couldn't battle off dream demons that weren't his own. That just didn't work. Hell, he had a hard time fighting his own off.

But if he could offer her a little comfort and feel safer by holding her and giving her a boney pillow of a shoulder he'd do it. And if it made him realize just how much he really liked holding her and how just the tiniest bit it was going to feel like someone had ripped his chest open and scooped out what was inside when she left after it was all over and leave him feeling like an empty mummy husk…well…he'd deal with that. He'd dealt with worse hadn't he? He sighed gave up trying for a while. He rested his cheek against her hair and closed his eyes while Stevie Ray sung "Love me Darlin" and the irony wasn't lost on him.

In the rearview mirror Face watched his friend fight a losing battle. Yep, he had it bad alright.


	23. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: HA! Yes! It is I! With another chapter, and no I don't own anyone but my people. **

**Authors Note: Thank you all who have stayed with it and faved and commented on this story. There isn't any Hannibal yet, but we do have plot advancement. And our crazy mobster is back.**

**Once again, reviews are love. LOVE! **

**Chapter 22**

Sam woke up to the sound of Face humming along to something jazzy and nice. She could tell they were still on the road by the movement of the van. She was comfy and warm and there hadn't been a single bad dream since she'd gone back to sleep the second time. She started snuggling into her pillow and then said pillow mumbled, tightened its arms around her, and sighed as though as content as a kitten right into her ear. Sam froze as she realized she was wrapped around Murdock and he was just as equally wrapped around her from the feel of it. Not only that but it was in full view of his team mates. Oh boy, this was great.

She cracked one eye and saw that yes, both his leather jacketed arms were holding onto her and she was half draped over his chest. She'd managed to bury her face into that same chest during the night. She was sure there would be an imprint from his jackets zipper on her cheek. Attractive. She very carefully pulled her arm back from around his waist and started extracting herself from their mini twister session. He didn't wake up completely but from the little murmurs coming from his throat he wasn't pleased with whatever she was doing. Samantha was finally free after a good minute and a half of contorting. She let out a relived breath and settled back against the chair.

She realized as nothing truly came into focus he still had her glasses in his pocket. She leaned over and very carefully slid her hand beneath his jacket. His chest rose and fell beneath her fingers steadily and she was once again reminded of how deceptively muscled he was. Shaking her head free of the distraction she found his shirt pocket and slipped her glasses out of it. This close, her face was nearly touching his. He was still asleep. And he had very long eyelashes. Sam nearly threw herself backwards away from him. She put on her glasses and then very carefully moved to the second row seat.

"Hey Sunshine." Face caught her eyes in the rearview mirror and grinned. He'd watched the whole thing that had just transpired. "How'd you sleep?"

Samantha cringed but hoped he hadn't noticed anything. "Uhm…pretty good I think." She wished she had her hat on since her hair was probably something akin to Moe Howard right then. But then she knew that getting it would require another session of reaching into Murdock's jacket. The Three Stooges look would have to stay. She glanced through the window and noticed that they were traveling through some heavily tree filled area.

"So where are we?" Sam decided to try and control the conversation and steer to safer territory.

Face glanced down at the map that was setting between the two front seats. "About two hundred miles south of the Canadian border at this point. We're nearly where we need to be to pick up the Col. Hopefully he's got good news. And by good news I mean he got paid for the job he went up there to do."

"Why'd he go alone?" Samantha asked, actually curious. They were a team. She didn't think they were split up very often.

The movie star looked uneasy for a minute. She wondered if he thought he was sharing too much. After another second it looked as though he'd decided that there was no harm in telling her this since they were going to be together for at least a little while. "We don't normally do that, but circumstances as they were…it was the best course of action. We needed to get flyboy back there out of the nut hutch and we needed some funds like always. This job was a one man operation and Hannibal's expertise was a perfect fit. So Boscoe and I went south and Hannibal went north."

"Ah, that makes sense." Sam rubbed the back of her neck and sighed. "Thank you by the way…again…for helping me get out of there."

Face glanced over his shoulder briefly and gave her another blinding smile then turned back to the road. "You're welcome princess. Murdock sort of made it a priority. When he wants something it's like a dog with a bone…he's not letting go until he gets it." He caught her gaze in the rear view mirror and gave her a wink which made her uneasy and blush a bit, which was just weird.

"I think I need to stretch my legs and it's time for Boscoe to rise and shine. If he isn't fed every six hours or less he gets grumpy." Face said rolling his head on his shoulders.

"He wasn't grumpy already?" Sam asked before she could stop herself.

The blonde laughed. "Oh you haven't seen grumpy yet. Trust me, you'll know."

"Warn me when it's coming please." She told him.

"I promise. Murdock can deal with him while we find shelter in a bunker twenty feet below the ground together. That might be far enough away." Face laughed as he turned onto the exit that would lead to a country themed restaurant and gas station.

"That's not very fair to Murdock." Sam said, resting her elbows on her legs and laughing along with the movie star. She actually was starting to like the guy more and more. He had a personality to go with the looks.

"Bah, trust me. Murdock can handle BA a lot better than most. It's because of the cooking thing. Fly boy can cook like a fiend and BA's heart is located in his stomach, I firmly believe it." Face said and pulled into the parking lot, taking note of the cars, the exits, and looking for anything that might smack of agents from any of the numerous groups that would love to get their hooks in them. His spidey sense wasn't tingling so he figured this was a safe place to break and feed the van and the big guy.

Sam laughed again because she believed it herself after seeing all the curry and burgers the huge man in the passenger seat could put away. "I believe it too." She told the movie star.

"Believe what?" A half sleepy, half suspicious voice asked from behind her.

Sam turned to find Murdock awake and pulling on his hat while looking pointedly at her and Face.

"We were talking about you and BA and the fact that you can calm him down better than just about anybody." Sam told him wondering why he was looking at her so strangely.

"I wouldn't say that." Murdock glanced over at the still slumbering giant. "Boscoe and I have a very special sort of relationship. Sort of the kind that zoo keepers who tend big freaking lions that could tear their arms off at any time do."

"Awww BA was worried sick about you Murdock. You should have seen him." Face told him while sliding into a spot a little ways from the restaurant entrance.

"I don't doubt it Facey…he truly loves me deep down." Murdock grinned finally, his eyes moving back to his princess again. She had on her glasses firstly, which meant she'd snagged them out of his pocket. When he'd woke up and noticed she wasn't where he'd left her…namely comfily nestled up next to him…he'd gone to panic mode in the space of a heartbeat. He'd nearly jumped up out of the chair and then he'd heard her laughing. That was nice and his rattled brain calmed down.

He wasn't quite awake yet, partially due to the fact he'd not slept this much in the span of two days for a long, long time. So when he realized she was laughing and it wasn't due to something he'd done, he'd grown…concerned. So he'd cracked an eyelid and saw that she had moved to the lone seat in the next row and was being chatty with Face, and he was the guy making her laugh. He didn't like that much.

Face turned off the van and gratefully opened the door and stretched outside. Sam looked a bit hesitant, not sure what was up with Lancelot who was still looking at her funny. "Did you sleep well?" She asked him finally to break up the tension. BA was still unconscious.

"I was gonna ask you the same thing." He replied with one more pointed look. He decided he'd worry about whatever it was bugging him later. "Any more bad dreams?" He asked gently.

Sam shook her head. "No…no you're idea worked. No bad dreams." She gave him a tiny smile.

"Well see, maybe you'll start listening to me a bit more." He studied her for a second and noticed she didn't have quite the same circles under her eyes she did before. She was still pale but there was for sure improvement.

"You make a good pillow." Sam told him and then realized just what she'd said aloud and quickly turned away. Jesus…that wasn't awkward at all.

Murdock only grinned brightly. "Aw shucks…the jacket did all the work. Oh and thanks for not drooling." He gave her wink when she turned and glared at him. "Have to say though it's a mighty easy job. Nice perks." Her eyes grew wide behind her glasses at that and he had to laugh again. He noticed her turn a shade of pink and she looked younger than he'd ever seen her appear. More like her actual age…which wasn't much younger than he was truthfully. But the weariness had been stealing years, or more so adding them. Thanks to some decent nights rest and decent meals she'd started looking better, more like she was supposed to. He'd have to make sure that trend continued, he liked the color in cheeks.

BA picked that moment to snore loudly. The pilot glanced over at his friend. He was always a bear to wake up. Best get Guinevere out of the van before he did so. "Come on princess let's get you away from the ogre." The pilot stiffly moved from the back seat and opened the sliding door, hopping out onto the asphalt and holding out a hand for Sam.

Sam was also stiff but she was also trying not to think about the way he had been looking at her with those green eyes of his and the fact she'd noticed he had a slight cleft to his chin. Ugh…she needed to stop that train of thought. But she took his proffered hand anyway, and a good thing because she nearly stumbled thanks to her legs being unused to moving.

"Steady there Guinevere." Murdock grabbed her other arm and stopped her from taking a header into the parking lot. She landed against his chest and made the mistake of looking up. He was looking at her with that same expression again and she was sure her mouth was hanging open like Clarence the Cross Eyed Yokel. What the hell…why was she suddenly a moron around him? Kryptonite eyes, that what it was…all that damn green which meant she was somehow Super Girl or something, which was total crap because she was neither a blonde nor had big boobs or a red cape. And god she was still staring.

"You alright princess?" Murdock asked her. She wasn't moving very much, which granted he wasn't complaining about since she was leaning on him and that was fine, better than fine actually. But she wasn't speaking and looked a little glassy eyed behind her glasses. He would have snickered at the phrase as it entered his head, but he was too concerned about her.

"Ye…yeah…I think my legs went to sleep in the van." Her voice was hushed and Sam cringed inside at the tone. She sounded like a very lame version of a wannabe phone sex operator. This needed to stop for the love of god, before he started to laugh right in her face. She'd laugh in her face if that was physically possible, because it might shock her into stopping this insane behavior.

Laughter was the furthest thing from Murdock's brain at that moment. As was any idea of her sounding lame…but the phone sex comparison wasn't far off the mark, something that would have surprised Sam. That soft whisper her voice had morphed into made every nerve ending in his neck tingle and heat spread out from his middle like he'd just drank down a shot of straight up Jim Beam. He felt his arm tighten around her and the other pull her closer without his even thinking it through. What was he doing? Bells were going off in his brain. This was not the time for this, this was not the place, and this was not a good idea.

Actually it was a great idea, another voice in his head was saying. Better than great, stellar and awesome, best idea he'd had in a while. Yeah, so she can just run away screaming when the loony tried to kiss her? Yeah, that would be brilliant, another voice replied. The vet with the rattled brain and the scars that were both visible and not so visible was the catch all the girls wanted. Bonus the whole fugitive on the run thing. That made him a real prize. What the hell was he thinking?

Murdock didn't really like that voice…so he told it to go to hell, even though he knew it was right on one level. He had no business trying to put the moves on a princess, what moves he had. He sure as hell wasn't Face who wrote the book on moves. And apparently Face could make her laugh…and well…damn it.

The pilot let out a shuddery breath and pulled back from her. His nose had nearly been touching hers. "You should be more careful baby." He told her, standing her up straight. "Blood flowing back to your gams?"

Sam felt dizzy, but not due to the lack of blood flow. What the hell just happened? "I think so." Oh good, she could talk normally again.

"Goodie, that could have been a problem when it came to being on the run. You sort of need legs for that." He managed to let go of her again, realizing every time it was getting a bit more difficult to do. He really needed to get a grip…no just the opposite dumbass. God give him strength, if he survived this it would be a miracle.

"Good point." Sam ran nervous fingers through her hair and glanced back at the van. "Oh, we need to get BA." She made a move towards the passenger door and Murdock touched her shoulder.

"I'll take care of the ogre. Trust me you don't want to be around when we have to wake him up." Murdock's voice was filled with mock gravity.

"That bad?" Sam asked with a raised eye brow.

"Worse." He pulled her away and pointed towards the restaurant. "Head on in and find Facey. And if you'd be so kind as to order two of the mega lumberjack breakfasts for the ogre there and a double stack of the chocolate chip pancakes for yours truly I'd be much obliged. Oh and a REALLY tall and cold glass of milk. I'll be out here a while."

Samantha couldn't stop the grin spreading over her face at his request. Not only did what he was ordering sound really good but the way he ordered it managed to sound really good. That honey coated accent was slipping out and it was starting to affect her again. "I shall do your bidding Lancelot. Go soothe the ogre as is your solemn vow as his brother in arms." She replied slipping into her faux British mode and giving him a slight curtsey.

There she was again, making him go all loopy inside. But he didn't miss a beat, slipping into the land of Camelot right with her. "Thank you m'lady, please do know I appreciate your assistance. Tis an honor to be sure." He bowed in response.

Sam turned to head through the door and Murdock realized she was missing something. He snagged her hand, surprising her. "You forgot your crown your majesty." He said, and then pulled her baseball cap from his pocket, placing it on her head with what he considered a regal flare. He gave her a grin. "Princess of the Air, there you are."

She shook her head at him. "I think you've confused me with someone else, but I do love the styling crown."

"It sure is, and I'm not confused." He gave her one more lingering glance. "Go on now before Face starts without us. Cause he will, I've seen it happen before."

Sam did as instructed and Murdock turned to study the van gravely. Specifically he was looking in the window where BA's Mohawk covered noggin was leaning against it. He really hated this part of his job. But he'd not make the mistake of getting too close to him again. That one time he'd been flung into a port a potty at the camp grounds they were staying at. That just hadn't ended well at all, for him or for the poor bastard trying to answer the call of nature he'd landed on.

When Sam got inside the restaurant she found Face in a half circle booth flirting with yet another in no doubt a long line of waitresses. This one was at least near his age and obviously didn't stand a chance against his charm and blinding teeth of doom. Sam idled nearby a rack of stuffed wildlife which looked like it belonged in the house of the Texas Chainsaw family. She would not be ordering any sort of BBQ or sausage from this place that was for sure. After a second more she walked over and slid into the booth, making certain not to sit too near the movie star. She'd already got a dagger filled look from the bottle blonde waitress.

Face took a moment to turn from his bewitching of their server to greet her. "Hey Sammy, this is Darla. Darla, this is Sam. Darla here was just telling me about how sweet her waffles are."

Samantha raised an amused brow behind her glasses. "I'm sure she was." She fought back saying anything else, at least about waffles. "Hi Darla, I need to order for our friends who are on their way in."

"Sure thing Sam." Darla made a point of using the more male version of her name. Samantha felt like telling the gal that the movie star was all hers and she was welcome to him, but decided it wasn't even worth it. There was a definite alpha female thing going on with her and Sam just didn't have the energy for whatever game that entailed. So instead she listed off the two mega lumberjack breakfasts for BA and the two orders of chocolate chip pancakes for her and Murdock. After requesting his very cold and big glass of milk she asked for coffee for herself. She needed caffeine badly.

When the loud banging started outside some of the people in the place started to look a little panicked, as did Sam at first. Then she noticed Face hadn't looked up from the local paper he was perusing. He simply stated "Ah, he's up." and kept reading. Sure enough a couple minutes later a sour expression wearing BA walked in followed by Murdock who was keeping a respectable distance from the larger man.

BA slid into the booth next to Face and the pilot slipped in next to Sam. "How bad was it?" She leaned over and whispered the question.

"Not too terrible…I mean the van has a dent in the door, but it's not in the shape of my face. So that's a win in my book." Murdock answered, shoving his hat into his pocket.

"I'd have to agree there." She nodded thoughtfully. "Oh by the way, pancakes and milk are on their way as is the big guys chow."

"You are in fact my favorite person in the world now." Murdock gave her a look. "You got food for you too right?"

Sam nodded. "Yes I did. In fact I got what you ordered, sans milk. I need coffee…need it."

"Addiction is never pretty." Murdock sighed and leaned back closing his eyes. He was trying not to be too concerned about the Colonel's meeting of their newest client. He hoped that the boss would agree with him on the dire situation Samantha was in and that would be enough to ensure his buy in on helping her. If that didn't work, the pilot wasn't sure what he would do. The guys seemed on board…but he knew that if the word that came from the Colonel was "No." then that would be that.

The clatter of plates on the table top brought the pilot back to himself. He wasn't quite sure where he'd been or for how long. Sam was pouring sugar free syrup on her pancakes in an attempt to somehow compensate for the amount of chocolate she was about to consume he noticed. Why she thought she needed to do so was beyond him. He grabbed his glass of milk and took a healthy swallow before snagging the 100 percent sugar filled maple syrup bottle and dousing his plate in it.

Many miles and hours before Tommy Boy Dinello was getting what would be considered bad news. He was in his office at his very large and what he considered stylishly decorated home. Many would consider his style that of a Pacino Pimp. But Tommy liked what Tommy liked, and what Tommy wanted he got…in most cases. But in the case of Samantha Foster, he wasn't getting what he wanted at all.

"She's gone boss." One of his lead boys, Victor reported. Victor was a heavy set fortysomething who'd worked with Tommy's family for over twenty years. He knew to keep his mouth shut and his nose clean. Tommy wasn't the first high strung and hungry little snot to come along in the business, and he wouldn't be the last. But Victor knew to watch out for him. He'd known his uncle.

Tommy looked up with dark, slightly blood shot eyes. It had been a long night before of partying at his club. Twins had been involved. "What do you mean she's gone?"

"There was an escape at the loony bin. She either went willingly or as a hostage. Some crazy vet that was housed there beat up our stooge and broke out." Victor was glad he was near the door in case Tommy blew a gasket. There was a vein throbbing on the side of his temple that was the gauge he used for when the gasket was going to blow.

"You're telling me the one person who can finger us is now on the run with fucking Rambo?" Tommy snarled out.

"Not a Vietnam vet, Iraq." Victor pointed out, not able to help himself.

"I don't give a shit what the hell he fought in! Where's the dumbass we paid to take care of this?" Tommy stood up and started pacing, smoothing his hair back into place.

"In traction, apparently Rambo did a number on him. Broke his knee into pieces." Victor had heard the description of the injury from his informant. The dumbass would probably be walking with a cane for the rest of his life.

Tommy stopped in front of his desk and took a breath, trying to zen it out like his shrink had told him to do. Zen zen zennity zen. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply for five seconds. Of course the vial of coke he'd done only a couple hours before probably wasn't helping his brain zen down. But there was nothing to be done about that was there? That extra pep was something he needed right then anyway. Tommy had a mess to clean up once again.

He turned met Victor's wary eyes. "Bring me Stewart. Tell the boys to spread the word around that we want big sister found and to keep an eye out for whoever the fuck Rambo is. If he's already off'd her yay, if not kill them both. Use a fucking arrow or something he'll appreciate….I don't give a shit. And have someone kill that useless dick with the cracked knee. I'm tired of fuck ups."

Victor nodded. He was used to Tommy rambling off multiple instructions like a machine gun, especially after a night of partying. The drugs would wear off in a few hours. He'd not include the idea of the arrow though, that would just confuse some of the guys. And he was pretty sure Tommy was being sarcastic. As he left the room the one thing he did know for sure was that that guy Bubby wouldn't have to worry about using a cane.


	24. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer: TADA ! New year, new chapter. And no I haven't died! So here you go and as always I don't own anything but the DVD and a little Murdock figure. Because everyone can use a little Murdock. Another chapter will be coming up very soon, perhaps even tonight! **

**Chapter 23**

Victor hated giving his boss bad news. And while the fact that he could without question relay the message that the fuck up with the bad knee was no more, the other bit of information wasn't going to sit as well with Tommy Boy. He could hear the teeth mashing over his cell phone, and when Tommy mashed he veneers no one was going to have a good day. Victor glanced up at the rear view mirror and gave a sweating Stewart Foster a look that said "Oh boy are you in for it when we get home."

On the other end of the line Tommy asked in a deeply angry voice. "Say that one more time…I don't think I quite understand the cluster fuck that we are in."

Victor swerved to avoid a pothole. "Stewart says there's evidence in the system history that someone made a back-up of the files. And it wasn't him." Victor held the phone away from his ear as a stream of profanities that made even him blush spewed forth from his boss's lips. When it quieted down he put the phone back to his ear.

"What do you want to do boss?" He asked very calmly.

"Well first of all, it's great fucking news to know that I picked the wrong Foster kid to partner with." There was a snicker followed by a familiar sound of snorting. "Foster kid…hey that's funny." Tommy laughed at his own joke, and then wiped away the white residue from his nostril. He settled back in the leather desk chair and stared up at the ceiling. "They haven't killed the bitch yet right?"

Victor shook his head. "Not yet, but our boys up north think they may have had a sighting."

"North huh? How far north are we talking? Are these fucking elves or something?" Tommy had visions of little mobsters in green pointed shoes and pointed ears lugging around pint sized guns and felt another bout of giggles coming on. He needed to cut down on the snow. That thought nearly sent him over the edge. Whatever they'd cut this coke with was great.

"No boss, near Canada. Word is she's traveling with a group and they are headed in that direction." Victor turned down another street. He really didn't feel like offing someone else tonight. And Stewart better not have pissed in his back seat because the sniveling douche looked like he might have.

Tommy took another line and after a second came up with the solution. "Get em found. See if the local boys of the PD are friends of the family or better yet related if you have to." He stood up and smoothed his hair back from his face. In the light of the room his eyes were coal black pupils, shark like. "I want her brought back here alive. She's not as stupid as her fucking brother. She has that back up info and I want it. Understood?"

"Loud and clear boss." Victor screeched to a halt at a red light. "What do you want me to do with Stewie? Bring him to ya?"

"I don't want to see that dumbass right now." Tommy started walking back out of the room. "Take him back to his house. We still need him but feel free to gut check him if you want. I don't care. I'm going to take a bath."

Victor flipped his phone closed when the line went dead. He tossed it onto the passenger seat and glanced back up at the rear view. "I swear to Christ if you pissed on the leather I'm going to break both your knees."

Stewart visibly gulped and thanked the lord and good genes for his grandmother's bladder control.

It was a day later when the mini-van pulled off the side of a road near the last rest stop before the Canadian border. Face had been talking and explaining why this was the place for the pick-up. "The borders right here. We've used this spot once before. There's an airport nearby and this place has hot showers. It's a win win."

Sam had nodded, figuring that all of those made sense if you were crossing a border or a fugitive…or both. Dirt and grime, easy access, quick get away all within reach. Yeah, it made sense. "Smart."

"We have our moments." Face gave her a wink and shut off the engine. He'd had enough driving for a while. He'd be glad when they had Hannibal back with them simply because there would be an extra person in the driving rotation schedule. "Alright, stretch the legs and calls of nature all around." He told them as they unloaded from the van.

Murdock hopped out the door and held out a steadying hand for Guinevere. She'd been quiet again for the most part and he had been too. It was something that Face had tried to pull him out of while BA thanked god and the heavens above for it. The pilot guessed that his princess was thinking about all the bad things she had going on. And he had been pondering well…a lot of things. Those worries she had he'd been thinking on too. But then there were more pleasant thoughts roaming around his noggin. Like how she'd been all breathless and soft in that parking lot when she'd fell against him.

Then the bad things would come running through screaming, like what would happen if Hannibal said no or if he screwed up and she didn't make it. That one really wasn't his favorite. He hated that one with every bit of his soul. So he focused on better things as often as he could while Face had driven along right up until they pulled into the rest stop.

"They have damn good pie here." Murdock managed to say with a smile that was only slightly forced.

Sam grinned as she cracked her neck with a satisfying pop. "Are there dancing midgets too?" She asked him.

"Well Diane, I have to say that the coffee is also amazing, but the backwards talking gets old real fast." Murdock answered smoothly. "And the preferred term is little person."

She laughed and Murdock felt his heart lighten at the sound. "I'll take you up on that coffee and pie Agent Cooper momentarily." Sam headed off in search of a restroom.

Murdock watched her head off towards the truck stop, the grin on his face growing. It would be okay damn it. He'd figure a way to make it all okay because he wanted to keep hearing that laugh and seeing her smile. She couldn't lose that. He'd make that one more mission in his life.

BA and Face after using the facilities did a quick check around. Caution was always the best course, especially this close to the boarder and with Hannibal coming back after a job. Feds or CIA, MP's…who knew who might have had a lucky day and noticed where they were.

Murdock and Sam had gone into the restaurant and were each into their second piece of Dutch Apple pie. The pilot looked over and saw that she'd managed to get whipped cream and crumbs on most of her chin. "Really…you aren't the most skilled eater are you Princess?"

"Good…don't care…umph." Sam replied, far too happy to be chowing down on something that had to have come from heaven and had enough calories in it to scare Paula Deen.

Murdock laughed and tossed a napkin at her. "Well if Jeff Bridges ever taught us anything it's that Dutch Apple pie is a universal dessert."

Sam took a second to use the projectile napkin. She took a sip of coffee and nodded. "That and Frisbees can be weapons."

Murdock drank down the last of his milk and swallowed his last piece of pie just as BA and Face came into the circle shaped booth they'd been sitting in. The pilot looked over to his teammates and Face nodded. "Looks secure, we shouldn't have any problems from what we can tell."

BA snagged one of the plastic menus. "I hate waiting. We gotta wait another 3 hours and there ain't nothing to do around here."

"The pies good." Sam offered.

BA gave her a glare then looked at her plate which was now empty. "Unless you two fools ate it all."

"Hey now…" Murdock frowned.

"BA I'm sure there will be enough pie for everyone in the truck stop." Face prayed for the millionth time that day for Hannibal to hurry up and get back so he wouldn't have to play dad anymore. "Murdock why don't you take Sam over to that arcade and go play and burn off some of that sugar. The big guy and I will get some lunch."

Murdock's grin immediately returned. He'd forgotten about the arcade. "Come on princess, allow me to show you my skills in a little game called Mortal Kombat."

Sam raised an eyebrow in challenge. "Prepare to be schooled Johnny Cage."

Murdock stood, his eyes narrowing at her. "You are so going down."

BA shook his head watching them go. "I didn't think there could be two of em in the world."

Face laughed, leaning back in his seat. "Nothing surprises me anymore BA."

The ranger was about to be proven wrong.

A white van pulled up an hour later into the parking lot. Inside were three men, each of them armed. The driver pulled out his cell phone and dialed the last number that had called him. It rang to the office of the local sheriff, a man named Brandon who had been what would be considered a dirty cop for the last twelve years.

Brandon was heavy set and going bald on top. But he was still more muscle than fat. And he planned on retiring in the next year or so on the funds his relationship with the local "bad element" had given him. Being a sheriff near the border had its benefits. And this day was turning out to be a good one. The word had reached him from his pals to be on the look-out for a girl traveling with three males. The finding fee was a decent chunk of change. He'd told the deputies to keep their eyes open for this person of interest but to not take them into custody. Just call him when they were spotted.

He'd got the call an hour before and as soon as he hung up on the pimple faced newbie deputy he'd dialed the number to Franklin, his benefactor. "I've found that thing you've been looking for." He'd told him. The ten grand would be in his account before dinner.

Franklin wasn't as big time as Tommy was. But he had uses and he had his own soldiers who worked under him. Three of them were in the van out in front of the truck stop, another three were at the airport with one of Franklin's planes. He'd been in the smuggling business for a while and he wanted to branch out. This was his chance to get in good with Tommy and expand his business.

Franklin's cell phone was the next one to be called by the van's driver. He answered it while watching his daughter bowl a perfect strike on her Wii. He took a drink of his Diet Coke and asked "Are you there?"

The driver, a young looking clean cut red head with sullen brown eyes named Travis answered him. "Yes Mr. Franklin. I'm looking right at them." Travis was watching Murdock and Samantha through the slightly grimy window of the arcade section of the rest area. They were playing some fighting game and both of them were staring intently at the screen in front of them.

"Remember the deal." Franklin put down his drink and smiled at his daughter, giving her the thumbs up sign. "Do what you have to do with the guys the girl is all that matters. And we need her alive."

"Understood Mr. Franklin." Travis hung up his phone with a click. He turned to his passengers. "Alright, let's get ready."


	25. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer: Guess who shows up in this chapter? Yes, finally the whole team (sort of) is back together. The daring heroics will soon start up in the next chapter. But until then Sam and Murdock share a sweet little moment and the bad guys start closing in. **

**Oh and yeah, I don't own anything but Sam and the original characters included with her.**

**Chapter 24**

Face and BA finished their lunch and went in search of their fellow Ranger and his princess. They found them still in the arcade battling it out on the Mortal Kombat machine. Murdock was actually sweating and so was Sam. Face looked concerned…how the hell do you work up a sweat playing a video game?

"Uhm…Murdock…" Face started to ask.

"Not now…" Murdock didn't look away from the screen as Sonya Blade deflected Raiden's latest attempt to beat her senseless. They were tied and this game was the last one as he'd run out of quarters and his wrists were starting to hurt. They'd played ten games and this was number eleven. They'd each won a round and this was the third fight. This was for the whole enchilada and the god of thunder wasn't going to let him down.

"Taste lightening chickadee." Murdock executed another move and was sadly disappointed with the result as she avoided it completely.

"Taste floor hat boy." Sam replied and with that Sonya Blade slammed the ancient god into the pavement. The words Finish Him flashed up on the screen and Sam, with more than a little satisfaction thanks to the memory of the Trivial Pursuit battle, blew a flaming kiss that fried Murdock's on screen persona into a cinder.

The pilot's head fell forward in defeat. She'd bested him, the man who'd taken on all comers at the arcade in his home town and never lost a match. The guy who's initials were on every spot on every high score board at every base he'd called home that had an MK machine. She'd beat him. Murdock didn't know if he should be crying or begging her to have his children. Maybe both…he was still in shock so he wasn't sure.

"Good game Lancelot." Sam held out her hand and Murdock sulkily shook it.

BA laughed. "Someone got schooled."

Face still was trying to figure out what had just happened and was rather creeped out by the fact a blonde with great boobs could burn a man to death by blowing a kiss. He had some big time worries if this game had any truth to it. "Uh, so as I was saying…or trying to before you got immolated and emasculated by Sam here." This garnered a dagger glare from the pilot. Face held back his laughter but only just. "The Colonel should be crossing the border in about an hour. So we should be getting ready."

Murdock nodded and Sam started looking nervous. The Colonel was the man who would be the deciding vote on if they were going to help her get her life back and the thugs put away who'd destroyed it. That included her asshat of a brother.

Even though Lancelot was full of assurances they'd help her no matter what, that could all change. And she wasn't going to cause a rift within the group. She'd leave before she'd cause that and would deal with everything on her own. Her knight and his friends had done enough already. Even though the thought of not seeing Lancelot anymore made her wince just to ponder it, it would be for the best. Yeah the best, sure Sam…you believe that. Inwardly she groaned and flipped herself the bird. She didn't need her smartass brain to start down that path.

"He's coming through at the same spot as always, so we'll meet him there and bring him back here." Face glanced at Sam and then back at the pilot. They'd have to talk about their newest recruit with the boss at some point and that discussion was going to happen very soon. He could already feel the tension rolling off of Murdock in waves. "It would probably be best if the princess stays here. You know how Bernie is when he sees new faces."

Bernie was their contact who helped get them back and forth across the Canadian border. Sometimes Face thought the guy may have been even crazier than Murdock. He had trust issues and was completely paranoid. Considering what he did for a living that was rather ironic. But the rat like little man's sense of being overly cautious was why he was so good at getting fugitives back and forth over the line. Face knew that probably the only reason he was even remotely friendly with the colonel was the fact he'd saved his life at least three times that Face knew of.

Murdock didn't look happy with Face's suggestion. He didn't like having Sam out of his sight but he knew Face was right. Bernie would probably freak out and have a stroke if anyone other than the team even saw what he looked like. But he wasn't going to leave her alone there either. He wanted a chance to talk to Hannibal about the situation and the drive back would be perfect. He looked trapped to put it mildly.

"I'll stick with guard duty for the royal pain." Boscoe said noticing the way Murdock was starting to look like a cornered ferret. "I want her to teach me how she just kicked your scrawny behind on this thing."

If he didn't think BA would throw him through the nearest wall or window the pilot would have kissed the big guy. If he could trust anybody with Sam it would be BA. He still didn't like leaving though. "Thanks Boscoe. Next chance I get I'm making you some Murdock Marinade Special Ribs." He grinned at his compadre.

"As long as it's not the secret sauce I'm all good with that deal." Boscoe walked off to get some quarters and Face went to get the van leaving the knight with his princess.

"Well it sounds like I'm going to get some alone time with the big guy. This should be interesting. Should I let him win?" Sam asked, pursing her lips.

Murdock looked thoughtful. "He may sense the fact you are going easy. It could be worse…maybe just once." He took off his cap and started fiddling with it nervously. "Hey…I…I don't like leaving you behind. But this is a chance to talk to the Col about the situation. And well…I trust Boscoe. So I don't want you thinking I'm shirking my duties…I just…"

Sam took hold of his hands that were going to twist his ball cap into pieces if he wasn't stopped. "Lancelot it's okay. I think I'll be alright for a while with Boscoe and a video game to keep me company. And no one on this earth could accuse you of shirking your duties as my knightly protector. So stop worrying." She grinned up at him from beneath the brim of her own ball cap. He still looked worried as he met her gaze.

Sam realized she could be in a maximum security lock down vault and he wouldn't be convinced she was safe unless he was standing nearby and ready to pounce on whoever tried to get near her. She gave his hands a squeeze. "And if I haven't said it yet today, thank you for being my knight."

She saw his eyes lose some of the tension from around them and he smiled at her, that crooked grin she'd come to really like. "Oh! I almost forgot." Sam reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a tiny plush airplane. It had cartoon eyes in the windows and a big smile on the front. There was a little keychain hook connected to its tail section. She'd used one of the quarters he'd given her on a crane game the minute she'd seen it inside and had snared it. "This is for you. I thought Jumbo would be a good name."

Murdock looked like she'd handed him a million dollars. His face lit up like the fourth of July. "How…where…he's perfect!" He exclaimed.

"I snuck over to the crane games. It's a knack." She grinned, nearly blushing. "But he had to be yours."

Murdock loved the little guy immediately and clipped him to the belt loop of his jeans. He had a feeling that Jumbo would bring him some luck in the future. "Thank you Guinevere."

Samantha knew she was full on blushing at that point. His eyes were doing that crinkle thing again and his voice was doing that whole Texas thing and it was just a little fuzzy airplane. Why was she blushing? "Well you know us royals and our talismans." She laughed, feeling nervous herself for some unhealthy reason she wasn't going to think about. Nope not thinking about it…

Face thankfully picked that moment to honk the vans horn to signal it was time to go.

The pilot glanced over and then back to her. She looked like she was blushing, but he couldn't be sure. The brim of the hat kept her face in a bit of a shadow. Why was she blushing? Well…princesses were supposed to do that right? Innocence and prim and proper behavior, that sort of thing. He had to admit though she looked cute as button from this angel.

"I'll wear him proudly." He told her. "I am off to retrieve the commander at arms from his journey my lady. When I return we shall joust once more upon the field of pixelated battle so that I may earn back my honor that you stole with your fair hand. Till then." Murdock pulled back on his cap and with an air of chivalry to rival a Disney Prince he grasped hold of her hand leaned down and kissed her knuckles, his forest green eyes locked on hers.

It was only for a second, maybe two but she felt the jolt go up her arm and straight into her chest. Good lord did he have some sort of residual current left over from the shock therapy sessions he'd gone through? Because…that…that was not normal…was it? Maybe all women felt like that when a guy did the courtly bow knuckle kiss? Was it only two seconds because it seemed like it was longer, or was that just her? Oh boy…

Murdock let go of her hand and gave her a wink that wasn't quite knightly and then he was heading off to the van where Face was waiting.

Sam found herself glancing down to see if there were scorch marks on her fingers and was surprised to see none. "Oookay….we need to just take a breath and not dwell on that anymore." She said aloud.

"Dwell on what?" BA appeared next to her and nearly made her have a heart attack.

"Nothing! Uh…let's see what you can do big guy." Sam nearly stumbled walking back to the arcade machine. BA shook his head and wondered just what the crazy fool had going on that would make a girl get all weak in the knees over him. Then he decided he was probably better off not knowing and ignorance in this case was bliss.

Outside in the parking lot Travis and one of his associates watched anxiously as the mini-van pulled away with only two of the three males inside. "You're sure that she's still in there?" Travis spoke into a blue tooth headset hooked to his ear. On the other end was his associate Chet who had gone inside to get an idea of what they would be dealing with and to keep an eye on the target.

"Yes, she's with the big black one. They're in the arcade." Chet took a sip of coffee as he casually observed BA being taught how to block a flying kick by the girl in the glasses. He didn't know what she was wanted for by their boss, but that wasn't his business either. His business was to bring her back on a plane to the man who was going to pay them a lot of money for her.

"Alright well two of the three problems just left the parking lot. We have to do this with the least amount of issue and witnesses." Travis gauged there were probably around twenty or so people at the rest area. Subtle would be the way to go. He turned to Bret, Chet's brother who sat next to him. He was always thankful when he heard their names that he wasn't a member of their family. "Check the bag and see what we have on hand." Bret nodded and grabbed the big leather satchel from the back seat. When Travis looked inside he nodded. "That'll work. Let's move on this now, there's no telling when those two will be back."

Hannibal looked tired as he walked towards his fellow teammates. Bernie wasn't the best driver in the world and the job hadn't been the easiest either. He would be grateful for a day or two of nothing but sleep. He waved a salute to Bernie who immediately took off back to the cabin he had in the middle of a dense wooded area that Hannibal had been to just once. And even that time Bernie had made him wear a blindfold.

Face had a nervous grin on his face and Murdock looked just plain nervous. There was no sign of BA which was surprising and worrisome. "Captain, Lieutenant…good to see you."

"Same to you sir." Face moved to grab the bag from Hannibal's shoulder. The boss looked worn out. "So how'd it go?"

"As well as could be expected when half the intel was wrong and the other half was guessing. But to answer your question, yes we got paid." Hannibal gestured at the bag that Face had tossed into the backseat of the van. "It's in there, less Bernie's piece. It should keep us for a while." The Colonel looked over at his pilot who hadn't really said anything yet…and that was not Murdock at all. "Captain, I'm glad to see you're out and about and okay. But you're awfully quiet." Hannibal raised a grey brow as he reached into his pocket for a cigar.

Murdock looked at the ground for inspiration, but only saw dirt…which wasn't a good sign. Okay, he had to do this. It was for Samantha, and he wasn't going to let her down. "Well sir, I do have a lot on my mind." He actually half expected BA to say "How's that possible fool…you lost it a long time ago." But as he wasn't around Murdock kept talking. "I…I need your help Colonel, you and the rest of the team."

Hannibal lit his cigar his brow furrowing. "What sort of help son?"

Face cleared his throat. "Boss, Murdock's got a story for you. I already know it and so does BA. It's part of the reason Boscoe's not here right now."

The Colonel exhaled a plume of smoke and sighed, letting the taste and familiar ritual of that first stogie after a job do its work. He had a feeling that his one or two days of rest were going to have to wait. "Alright Murdock let's hear your story."

Face opened the driver's side door of the van. "He can tell it on the way back to the rest stop. Boscoe's there now with the princess." This last bit Face added grinning.

Murdock hopped in the back, his cap in his hands twisted in a knot while Hannibal slipped into the passenger seat looking very confused. "Princess?"


	26. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original peoples. That is all. **

**Chapter 25**

BA glowered even more if possible as Samantha body slammed Johnny Cage into the ground for the eighth time. "That ain't right...there's no way you did that again." He growled out and tried to recover before she could do anymore damage to him.

"It's all in the wrists big guy. And reflexes." She grinned and had Sonya flip into the air and land a devastating kick to the head of the cocky movie star. The fact that BA had picked him out of everyone else had made her laugh.

"Man this is so not right. You don't tell Murdock about this...ever." Boscoe admitted defeat then. He wasn't cut out for fake fighting. The real thing was what he was good at.

"My lips are sealed BA." Sam cracked her fingers with a satisfying pop, glancing around. She wondered where Murdock was and how he was doing with his pitch to the Colonel about helping her with her problem. Truthfully she was also just missing her knight in shining plaid. It wasn't that she felt safer with him nearby, but she simply liked him. Okay, she liked him. There she admitted it. And that was as far as that was going to go.

"How long do you think it'll be till they get back?" She asked BA, taking a sip from her soda.

"The pick-up is only about twenty minutes from here. If Bernie's on time, and he usually is they should be here in ten minutes or so...unless something happened." BA took a bite of the snickers bar that he was eating. A bite for him was half the bar.

Sam felt better hearing that, but she still worried for her knight. She could tell Murdock was nervous about the outcome of his talk with his boss. And she knew he didn't want to let her down. She pondered for a moment just skipping out while he was gone. It might be easier for him. Actually she knew it would be because all she was apparently good for was getting him into trouble in various ways because he was so damned set on being her protector of the realm.

She'd miss him horribly, that sick sinking feeling in her chest at the thought of leaving him told her that much. Great…that's going to put a wrench in that plan. But she could work through that if it meant he was safe. Sam glanced over at the exit that was only a short run away on the other side of the room.

She looked over at Boscoe who was watching an episode of Top Gear that was playing on the TV above the pool tables. Out of the whole team he'd be the one happiest to see her go she suspected. Maybe this was the chance to do right by Murdock and slip out the door.

"Boscoe…what would you say to me just leaving while your back was turned?" She asked far more casually than she felt the choice.

The big man kept looking at the TV. "I'd say there goes trouble." He replied. And then he turned and his dark brown eyes drilled into her. "Then I'd have to go drag your sorry butt back in here and duct tape you to a chair."

Sam's eyes widened in surprise at the response and BA kept talking. "I ain't dealing with no crazy fool going crazier cause his just as crazy girlfriend decided to run off on her own."

Sam's shoulders slumped and she looked guiltily away. "I'm not his girlfriend. And plus I just worry. I don't know if dragging you guys into this is the best thing. And I don't want Murdock hurt because of me."

BA shook his head and popped the second half of his candy bar into his mouth. "You don't want to hurt him then you don't run off. That nut job cares what happens to you. And just because I say I don't want no trouble don't mean we're gonna leave you high and dry to deal with it by yourself. Trouble is our job." BA paused a moment and his voice grew less harsh. "I didn't say so sooner…I'm sorry about your pops."

Sam looked back up at him and saw his expression was one filled with the sympathy only someone who'd had that sort of loss could know. A lump formed in her throat and she felt that familiar sting of tears start coming to her eyes. Like hell she was going to cry in front of this mountain of an army ranger. She took a steadying breath and gave BA a shaky smile. "Thank you." She told him and she was pretty sure he knew it was for more than the condolences.

The Ranger nodded and turned back to the TV show.

Travis was watching the scene play out. He and Bret had joined Chet inside, each with a cup of coffee in their hand that was growing colder. Minimal attention was what Travis wanted to strive for, but that wasn't always easy or feasible. With just one man to deal with it would be easier. But the man was big…and Travis had noticed the tattoo on his arm.

They'd wait for their moment and that came ten minutes later.

BA glanced at Samantha. "I have to make a pit stop. You stay right here okay?"

Sam grinned and nodded. "I'm not running off, I promise."

"Alright…don't make me have to hunt you down. I will." He headed towards the restrooms.

Travis nodded to Chet and Bret. The brothers followed the big man and Travis made his move to where Samantha sat nursing the last of her soda.

BA's attention wasn't as focused as it should have been. He'd been looking for military types. Men with the tell-tell signs of government. The guys who suddenly appeared behind him in the bathroom were regular looking guys who had to be related.

They jumped him without preamble, the darker haired one slugging him in the stomach with a brass knuckled fist and the other one using an extended Billy Club to the back of his neck. They'd done this before…they were good…dangerous…and they were there for Samantha he realized really fast. When the next blow came down Boscoe's last thought before everything went black was "Murdock's gonna kill me."

Samantha hadn't noticed the strange guy who had gotten closer and closer over the last few seconds. On first glance there was nothing special that stood out about him, until you noticed his brown eyes were really sort of empty. She walked over to the trashcan to toss her cup away when he came up behind her. The syringe was tiny and the needle was nothing more than a pin prick to her arm. Travis was fast and had the thing in the trash and his arm around her in only a heartbeat.

Sam barely had time to react. She let out a yelp the minute she felt the sting of the needle and then turned and clocked him once on the jaw. But already whatever was in the syringe was taking effect and everything felt slowed down. Travis's head went backwards but he quickly recovered from the sloppy punch and had his 45 pressed against her side out of view of the rest of the rest stop.

"Sorry if I scared you sis." He said loudly to appease any of the curious as to why she had struck him. 9 times out of 10 no one would get involved anyway. He leaned closer and whispered "That was just to calm you down and make this easier." He pressed the gun harder into her side. "This will be what's used if you make this harder. So I suggest you stop fighting me and come along."

Sam was terrified but whatever was in the needle was making everything woozy. She fought it though, or tried to as Travis half dragged half led her back towards the entrance. "Boss…coe…" She managed to say.

"My associates are getting him out of the way. Not to worry….they won't kill him unless they have to." Travis pushed open the doors just as Chet and Bret were walking out of the restroom. He glanced at them and Chet gestured a thumbs up. "Ah, he's still breathing. So don't worry." The parking lot wasn't as crowded as it was earlier and Travis wanted to get to the airport quickly before any surprises happened.

Sam was having a hard time standing up straight, but she couldn't just let these assholes take her without a fight. She had a feeling that if she got to wherever they were going she'd not be seen again. "Come on brain…come..on.." If she passed out she was done.

"Here take her, I need to get the keys. Careful, she's got a mean right hook." Travis handed her off to Bret.

While Travis stopped to dig the keys from his pocket Sam saw her only chance. With as much focus as she could manage she slammed her foot down hard on Bret's and swung an elbow towards his head, hitting his skull. Bret fell down on the ground and Sam ran, barely keeping her feet back towards the rest stop.

She made it maybe ten feet before Chet tackled her, causing her to fall onto the graveled parking lot. Little bits of sharp rock cut into her legs and hands as she landed hard. He quickly turned her over, anger in his eyes his fist landing viciously against her cheek. "Bitch!" He snarled. Sam groaned…the taste of blood in her mouth and her head ringing. She knew that was it…the little black dots were growing bigger and she couldn't stop them.

Chet reared back to hit her again but a hand grabbed his wrist. "Come on you idiot. We have to get going." Travis ordered him. "NOW."

Chet looked over to his brother who was standing up and limping towards their ride. He stood and grabbed Sam's wrist hoisting her upright. She looked as if she'd collapse at any second…or throw up but probably both. Travis shook his head. "Great job moron, carry her and put her in the back."

It was at this moment that Face turned into the parking lot after what felt like a very long drive back. Murdock's rambling explanation had been filled with nerves and the need to go into every detail as his brain remembered it. By the end Hannibal looked awestruck, slightly deaf, and concerned. He'd turned to Face with an expression that said "Would you please translate this?"

It had taken Face less than two minutes to give Hannibal the pertinent details of what was going on. The Colonel's face grew serious as he realized what sort of trouble Samantha was in. He'd been right about the sleep he wouldn't be getting. He turned towards the pilot who was now trying to not fidget, hat back on his head and trying very hard to remain calm even though he felt like he was about to rip his way out of his own skin.

"Captain, you've got yourself in quite the quandary." Hannibal puffed at the cigar as he pondered the problem.

Murdock took a breath and steeled himself. "I know sir. But Guinevere didn't ask for this either. She needs my help sir, she needs our help. And that's what we do. I…I can't leave her to what might happen. I just can't do that."

Hannibal studied him for a moment. Murdock was determined. Hannibal Smith knew his team, knew each man like he knew himself. And he saw in Murdock's gaze a man who wasn't going to give up. This princess apparently had earned the pilots loyalty which was not something to be taken lightly. Hannibal knew the value of that loyalty from experience. Murdock had saved his life as well as the lives of the rest of the team more times than he could count. He'd earned the right to have them return the favor for someone he cared about. And Hannibal saw the signs that Murdock cared more than just a little for Guinevere. Which for her sake Hannibal hoped wasn't her real name.

"Alright Murdock, we'll help your princess." The Colonel said with a half-smile.

Murdock's face was at once relieved and ecstatic. "I truly appreciate it sir. Thank you sir. Thank you." He grinned widely.

"It's our job Captain, as you said." He turned back towards the front of the van. "And Miss…"

"Samantha?" Face said oddly.

"Samantha…that's her name?" Hannibal asked.

"No…I mean yes…I mean what the hell is going on." Face said, hitting the brakes as he turned into the rest stop and saw a man carrying Samantha who looked like she'd been tossed on the ground and unconscious.

"Samantha…" The pilot's voice was strained as the scene came into focus. The moment Murdock saw her he was moving. The van hadn't even come to a full stop and he had the door open and was bolting out the back, pulling his gun from the holster under his jacket. He heard Hannibal and Face following him but his world was centered on her. She wasn't moving, she was limp as a rag doll from what he could see. If she was…gone…then he'd kill all three of them. Slowly…he knew quite a few ways to do something like that. He'd learned from pros and he had some doozies he could try out. But he wasn't going to think about that yet. He had to stop them and get her away from them. That was his goal. Anyway she couldn't be gone...she'd promised him she wouldn't leave him behind.

"Stop right there!" He heard Hannibal call out from far away; his voice holding that power that only men born to be leaders could carry. But the three men weren't stopping. The one carrying the girl placed her quickly into the back of the unmarked van while another jumped into the driver's seat. Two of them turned and pulled guns from beneath their coats. Chet took aim and fired at the man in the leather jacket.

Murdock slid to his knees on the gravel, avoiding the bullet. He didn't even feel it as the rocks tore at his jeans and ripped into his skin. He took aim and fired at the van, trying to hit the tires to keep them from being able to leave. He missed as another volley of gunfire headed his way. The parking lot was becoming a war zone and Samantha was behind enemy lines, beyond his reach.


	27. Chapter 26

**DISCLAIMER: Hey A-Fans! Yes! MURDOCK AND HIS PRINCESS ARE BACK AND I DIDN'T FALL OFF THE FACE OF THE EARTH! To make up for the fact that it has been WAY too long since I've updated this story, I promise you two chapters this weekend. And I can also promise some crazy Murdock awesome antics.**

**Thank you for keeping faith with me and this story. I love writing Murdock and Sam. They are a great couple of characters and I promise to do better with telling their tale. **_**(signed your friendly neighborhood fic writer)**_

**Chapter 26**

"Where the hell is BA?" Face's manic voice asked the question over the insanity they'd just walked into, or more like drove into. Hannibal had taken a position behind a Cadillac nearby. Murdock was right next to Face and his gaze never wavered away from the van that with the girl he considered his princess.

"He's not here." The pilot replied and Face glanced over at the sound of how calm the response was. Murdock's expression was one of complete focus and in his green eyes burned that determined fire that Face had seen a few times before. It never ended well for those that it was directed at.

Another hail of bullets and another return of fire burst around them. Hannibal knew that the cops would be arriving soon. They were in a public place and not in a third world nation where things like parking lot fire fights were something to simply be ignored. And if the cops showed up they were screwed in more ways than one, that included Samantha who was for all intents and purposes an escaped mental patient. They needed to get her away from the thugs who had her and then get out of the general area as soon as possible.

Travis was having the same thoughts as Hannibal at that moment. They needed to get out of the area before the more reputable authorities showed up. The battle was not going to end well for anyone involved because the police had more numbers and they would have been called by now. "Get In!" He yelled to the two brothers. Bret covered his brother with another round of bullets while Chet none too gently tossed the now unconscious Samantha into the back of their van. "Come on bro!" He called back to Bret.

Bret hesitated and that's when the loud bellow of rage came from the entrance to the restaurant. Boscoe was awake and not too happy. He was running full tilt without fear towards where Bret was standing. The distraction allowed Face to aim and hit him in the arm with a well-placed bullet to the bicep. Bret screamed and dropped his gun before he had a chance to fire at the large and very angry man with the Mohawk charging his way. Chet grabbed his brother and dragged him into the van; Travis slammed on the gas and barreled out of the parking lot in a shower of gravel.

Murdock started running, his gun in front of him trying desperately to hit the tires, part of this brain remembering that a stray shot could hit Samantha who was inside now and speeding away from him. Everything felt like a slow motion nightmare. He wouldn't believe the very thing he'd been dreading, afraid of happening was actually happening.

"Murdock! Murdock get in!" He heard Face as if from far away. The minivan rumbled next to him and he realized that he'd been running down the street away from the parking lot. Boscoe was inside and actually grabbed him by the arm and pulled him into the van shutting the door behind him.

Murdock's eyes were wide and frantic. Boscoe grabbed his shoulders trying to get him to snap out of whatever state he was in, shaking him. "Murdock! Murdock we're gonna get her back. You ain't got no more bullets in that gun fool, stop trying to shoot it."

At the sound of BA's voice he looked up and realized that the big man was right…he was still trying to fire an empty gun. BA had blood running down the side of his face and a knot forming on his forehead. "Boscoe…" Murdock shook his head trying to clear it, trying to focus and to bring that part of him that was a Ranger to the surface. He had to be that for Sam, he had to be that to save her. He couldn't let the fear of losing her be the reason he lost her.

He wasn't going to lose her, that's just how it was. He refused to let that be an option. He'd get her back. The team would get her back. There was no other way he'd let this end. He looked up at BA with clearer eyes. "What the hell happened?"

Boscoe could see that the crazy pilot was less crazy now. He winced as Face swerved and it jostled his already ringing head. "Dudes came in and clubbed me while I was in the latrine. No warning, they just came in and got the jump on me."

Hannibal called from the front "Who were they soldier?"

"Looked like civvies, but they were pros for sure. They'd done this shit before." Boscoe turned back to Murdock. "I'm sorry…" He said not able to quite meet the other man's eyes. "I shoulda been better prepared…she got taken cause of me."

Murdock nodded his head and reached into his jacket pocket, pulling out another clip and loading his gun in a smooth, practiced motion now that the haze was gone. "We'll get her back big guy." The pilot's gaze turned back to the van which was now heading down what appeared to be a well-traveled access road. His voice hardened as they got closer to the unmarked van. "But I get to have fun with the professionals first."

Face was had his foot planted to the floor driving their van at a steady 80 MPH. Hannibal had the window open on the passenger side and was still trying to pick off the right rear tire. It was a hard shot though as the driver of their target was swerving and his passenger was firing out from a window as well. "Damn it..." The Col. muttered, annoyed and angry. This wasn't typical…with the girl inside they couldn't just slam the car off the road and risk her being killed.

Hannibal had a feeling he knew where the kidnappers where heading. He told Face to swerve off the side of the rode. When Face looked at him like he was as kooky in the head as Murdock, Hannibal repeated the order. Face did as told and the van sped off away from them. The Col gave it thirty seconds and then told Face to start heading the way their quarry had. He knew in his gut he was right about where they were heading, and running in guns blazing wouldn't help the girl that had been kidnapped right out from under them.

Sure enough he was right. The small airport was one that he was familiar with. They'd used it a couple of times in the past. But right then it meant bad news and less time and opportunity. If the men that had Samantha managed to get on a plane things went from difficult to nearly impossible. But then again impossible was sort of their specialty.

The white van careened through the entrance gate and didn't stop anywhere near the parking lot near the main building. They were heading towards the area where the hangers were, the ones for private use and the planes that were used for random jobs and transportation.

Travis nearly flipped the vehicle as he took a hard right next to a medium a sized hanger that held a mid-sized cargo plane. The brakes squealing reverberated inside and made the attendant wince as it hit his ears. He gestured to the pilot inside the cockpit to start prep for final take off, it was obvious that the soon to be passengers were in a hurry. Two other men who were members of Travis's team pulled semi-autos from their stash and hurried over to their boss who assessed them of the situation.

Face stopped the mini-van a short distance from the entrance. BA reached into one of the plastic totes in the back of the van and pulled a rifle out, checking to make sure it was loaded. Murdock was already pulling the door open as Face and Hannibal jumped out. The team headed towards the hanger, avoiding detection by the skeleton crew of the tiny airport. Face and Hannibal took cover behind some large, rusted dumpsters. The pilot joined them, followed by BA who was limping a bit, but wasn't about to miss the opportunity for payback.

"We can't let them take her boss." Murdock said, gaze searching for a sign of Samantha even though the vehicle had disappeared. His heart was racing a mile a minute. He wished he really did have the ability to hulk out and smash like Dr. Banner. This situation would be resolved fast and he'd have a fine old time smashing the bastards that had grabbed her. As angry as he was right then he kept glancing at his fingers to see if they were glowing green yet. It wouldn't surprise him if they were.

"I know that Captain." The taller man replied, taking in the scene before him. He didn't like going into situations without knowing all the details. He wasn't familiar with the layout of the hanger, and he didn't know exactly how many men were in it. Too many variables made him nervous. But one thing he knew was that just waiting around hiding behind the garbage wasn't going to help the innocent girl inside. He turned to Face. "You and Murdock survey that hanger. Be careful, they may not know we're here, but don't take that for granted. I want to know exactly what's in there. BA and I will watch the entrance, see if anyone else decides to come crash this party." Hannibal gave a pointed look to the pilot who looked ready to come out of his skin again. "No daring heroics Captain. That means nothing crazy or smacking of the Range Rider or King Arthur."

Murdock looked towards the ground for a half second and took a deep breath. "Yes sir." He replied, obviously not thrilled with the order. Face didn't look thrilled either. He didn't know what to expect from the pilot while his Guinevere was held captive…but he seriously doubted even an order from Hannibal would keep him from doing something nuts.

Taking a deep breath Face patted Murdock on the shoulder and the two men headed around cautiously towards the back of the hanger. They kept behind storage containers and random vehicles, edging around and making sure to keep an eye out for a better, more covert way of entering the structure. After a couple close calls with Travis's thugs who were now patrolling the outside (Face had figured the goons wouldn't call the police to harass them) they found an unlocked side door and had slipped inside.

Murdock eye balled the plane within. He wasn't impressed. They didn't take very good care of their birds. He noticed rust spots and a fluid leak just at a first pass. Face gestured for them to head to the other side of the hanger and Murdock nodded once and they quietly made their way along the wall. They recognized the two thugs from the parking lot after ducking behind some fuel drums. Murdock's eyes searched frantically for Samantha but he didn't see her.

Face noticed the guns immediately…the men had upgraded to some heavier firepower. He also saw another guy who was in work coveralls. He was talking to the red head that had been driving the van. So far he counted a total of seven guys including the pilot he could see through the cockpit window. And he still didn't see Samantha.

Face didn't like the odds with just the two of them. They needed to get back to the Col and figure out the best way to proceed. He motioned to Murdock that they needed to head back. Murdock's expression wasn't a happy one at the thought of heading away from where Samantha most likely was, but he nodded an affirmative and made to follow his team mate.

They were nearly out the door when he heard the red head say "Alright, let's get going, go get her and let's get the hell out of here."

Murdock immediately stopped and turned back around. From the small office he saw one of the guys who hadn't been in the van carrying an unconscious Samantha over his shoulder, making his way up the ramp to the inside of the plane. She looked like a ragdoll, limp and lifeless. She was still wearing his cap and the sight of her like that made his chest feel as though he'd just been punched right square in the middle of it.

A familiar noise meant that the engines were going to start up…they were going to take her away. That couldn't happen. Face didn't notice when Murdock silently slipped back further into the hanger, doing the exact opposite of what he'd been told to do. Yes, he was going against orders, but then again…he did outrank Face. And he'd promised Samantha he'd protect her. He'd been doing a piss poor job of that apparently, and it was time to remedy that situation.

He was familiar with the plane type…Murdock was familiar with just about every type of plane. So he knew how to get inside it via the sneakier type of routes. That skill came in handy on covert ops and in situations like this one. He kept his eye on the thugs and managed to not be noticed missing by Face, at least until it was too late for the other man to do anything about it. Using one of the rear wheels he quickly headed up the landing gear and found himself in a section of the plane that was a sort of secondary cargo hold.

Face realizing exactly what had happened was indeed too late. Murdock was being unusually quiet, which meant completely quiet. Face was half way back to the rest of the team when he turned around and saw that Murdock wasn't there. By then the plane's engines were in full start mode. This was not good. Face couldn't figure out which way to run, back to the plane and no doubt Murdock doing something stupid, or to Hannibal and BA to let them know he'd lost their pilot and he was probably doing something stupid. Face didn't have to choose because the Col and BA appeared next to him, having heard the plane start up.

"Face, where the hell is Murdock?" The Col asked a bit loudly.

Face groaned. He'd catch hell for this later. Lots and lots of hell. "One guess…" He said, turning to look back to the hanger entrance where the plane was rolling out and heading down the runway.


	28. Chapter 27

**DISCLAIMER: OKAY A-FANS. NEW CHAPTER! AND IT'S A LONG ONE AND I THINK YOU ALL WILL ENJOY IT…A LOT. I'M CURIOUS AS TO WHAT YOU THINK OF THIS ONE, SO REVIEW AND LET ME KNOW. I'VE HAD THIS BIT IN MY HEAD FOR A WHILE AND I HOPE I'VE DONE OUR FAVE CRAZY PILOT JUSTICE AS WELL AS HIS PRINCESS.**

**ALSO KEEP IN MIND I'M NO EXPERT ON PLANES AND PHYSICS IN THE A-TEAM UNIVERSE DON'T REALLY APPLY. YES THIS IS ALL CRAZY MOVIE STUFF IN TEXT FORM. I'M SURE THAT MY REALITY HAS NOTHING IN COMMON WITH REALITY.**

**AS ALWAYS, I OWN NOTHING BUT MY ORIGINAL CHARACTERS. SHARLTO COPLEY OWNS MY HEART AND MURDOCK OWNS MY SOUL. THEY SWAP SOMETIMES.**

**Chapter 27**

Samantha was getting really tired of being knocked out, hit, and feeling like her head was going to pop off her shoulders and then explode. That had been occurring way too often over the last couple of weeks and she vowed the next person responsible was getting kicked in the crotch really, really hard.

As she came to this time she was laying on a raggedy bench that was bolted to a wall. Both of them were vibrating slightly and the whirring noise that ran through the air told her she was on an airplane. That realization made her sit up way too fast and she nearly threw up all over her new t-shirt as a stab of pain ran through her skull.

"That's one of the side effects, near migraine headaches. Sorry about that." A voice said from nearby. Sam managed to glance over and she saw the suited red head from the arcade reading a newspaper and sitting on a similar bench to her own.

"What…who…who are you and what's going on?" She asked, afraid she already knew the answer.

"Well Miss Foster my associates and I are taking you back home actually." Travis replied, going back to reading the sports section. "You've been summoned by my employer."

Sam felt that need to barf again come back on her. "Who…who's your employer?"

"You wouldn't know him I'm sure…but the chain of command would end with Mr. Dinello." Travis looked back at her with those same soulless brown eyes she remembered as he'd dragged her from her friends and Murdock. "His name I'm sure you know."

Sam swallowed down the fear that was starting to well up in her throat. She was on a plane…heading back to certain death once Tommy Boy Dinello got his way. And everyone knew Tommy Boy got his way. She tried to cram herself back into the crease of the bench, glancing around to see what avenue of escape was offered her. She saw one guy she sort of recognized sitting on another bench, another man wrapping his upper arm that looked to be bleeding, another guy watching closely. They all wore suits and it made a wave of manic hilarity roll through her wondering if they'd start dancing in unison while wearing sunglasses. Then she thought about the fact she was on a plane. There was nowhere to go.

Her head fell back onto her arm and she curled into a ball, trying really hard not to cry. That wouldn't help her at all, and the jerks would probably get off on it. She took off her glasses which by some miracle hadn't fallen off her when they'd tackled her in the parking lot. They'd seen better days. She didn't want to be able to see what was going on around her…make the world blurry it would be a bit easier to take.

She hooked the glasses on her shirt and then pulled the baseball cap off her head and shoved her face in it. The scent of curry and engine oil made everything a bit easier to take too. Samantha felt like someone had sucker punched her as she thought of her knight. Right then she'd give anything in the world to see his sparkling green eyes and hear him tell her how everything was going to be alright. He'd tried his best but there's only so much one person could do, even with the three other guys on his team. You can't beat the mob.

Sam knew she'd never see him again. He was miles behind her now. "Murdock…I'm sorry." She whispered softly into the faded fabric of his hat, a couple of tears escaping and falling onto the brim. The irony wasn't lost on her that she was on a plane. He'd promised he'd get her over the fear of flying. Right then being on a plane was the least of her worries…the thing landing was the problem.

A beeping sounded from overhead and a voice came over a crackling speaker system. "We've got something going on in the b-hold." The pilot Sam assumed said.

The man with the newspaper stood up and grabbed what looked like a CB handset from its hook on the wall. "What do you mean something going on?"

This time Sam's attention was grabbed because a concerned pilot and the words "Something going on" were never a good combination. The response this time came from the handset and wasn't as easy to hear, at least for her where she sat. "Looks like the hatch is open, not sure how. But I've got a light stating the hatch has been open Travis."

Travis sighed in irritation. He'd had enough issues with this supposedly simple grab and bag. This wasn't helping. God damn smuggling planes…he knew they weren't the safest bet in the world but he'd hoped they'd not have to deal with problems like this. It wasn't that long of a trip. "I'll have a couple of the boys go down and close it."

Travis clipped the handset back to the wall. "Chet, Dave, go down into b-hold and close the damn hatch. Be careful, it'll be cold and windy down there."

Neither man looked very thrilled with what they were doing. One of them nodded to the injured guy, patting him on his uninjured shoulder and walked past Sam, followed by Suit #3 who'd been patching up the other guy. As she watched, she saw them lift up section of the rear of the plane, a door within the floor and then climb down into what must have been b-hold.

Chet and Dave were instantly cold as hell when they came to the bottom of the ladder. The wind was nearly deafening from the 12 foot opening of the hatch. Chet was surprised the thing hadn't ripped off yet. You couldn't really hear anything due to the wind, so Chet motioned to Dave to get on the other side of the hatch to snag one of the wildly swinging thick cord handles to pull the thing shut. It was stupidly dangerous, but it was the only way to get the thing closed.

From behind a leftover crate of, what he knew to be fairly expensive whiskey, Murdock watched his plan come to fruition. This was stupidly dangerous (he would have been surprised to know he agreed with the thugs on something) but he'd done stupider and more dangerous things for not nearly as good a reason. Firing a gun in here would be a bad idea. Taking on two guys like these at the same time, even with the fact he was a pretty good fighter (if he said so himself) was a bad idea. But put the two guys near a 12 foot hole that was a few thousand feet above the ground that was trying really hard to suck them into it? That evened the playing field…so to speak.

The two men were focused on not falling when Murdock made his move. Dave noticed him first but by then it was too late. One good punch and Dave was flying sans the plane. Chet had a bit more time but his balance wasn't quite as good as Murdock's. It came from flying in the worst conditions you could imagine. Nothing really made him dizzy anymore. The thug made the mistake of trying to go for his shoulder holster. Murdock didn't have to anything more than watch as he slipped and fell through the hole. Well, that was anti-climactic.

Holding onto a juncture of the wall, Murdock used trickery built over many a flight in a piece of shit plane to get the hatch closed on his own. He took a minute to catch his breath and then try to rub some feeling back into his cold fingers. If he'd counted right there should be only two other guys and the pilot left up top with Samantha.

He climbed the ladder and very slowly and carefully lifted the cover that led down to the b-hold. About a two inch opening gave him a view of the plane straight down. He saw Sam sitting on the right side of the plane. She looked unharmed, but damn unhappy. On the left side he saw that bastard red head and the other guy from the shoot-out. The door leading to the cock pit was closed. Okay, what was the next step in his master plan of rescue? The element of surprise! The red head had his face buried in the newspaper and the thug was looking at his recently patched arm. Neither of them was looking towards the back of the plane.

Murdock climbed out of the hatchway and quickly had his gun in his hand. Firing it on the plane was a bad idea and he wasn't anxious to do so, but those idiots wouldn't know that. "Hey fellas, fancy meeting you again." He called over the sound of the engines.

Travis dropped his newspaper and stood up quickly, hand reaching for his own weapon at the unfamiliar voice. Bret did the same, wincing as he pulled at his wound. But when they saw the visitor had his own weapon drawn already they stopped.

"Murdock?!" Samantha's eyes were the size of saucers and she quickly scrambled to put her glasses on to confirm what she'd heard. "Holy shit…you're on the plane?"

The pilot didn't turn to look at her, keeping his eyes trained on the two toughs ahead of him. But he did smile that crooked smile. "Remind me to list mistress of the obvious to the list of your fine qualities princess. "

"How the hell did you get on the plane?" She asked him, wanting to run to him and hug him and thank god and heaven above that he was here. But she didn't because right then he had more important things going on.

"Stealth and cunning and determination; that's pretty much how." Murdock replied taking another few steps closer to where the villains in the story were standing. "It's really damn hard to keep a knight from protecting his lady, princess. That's something the two stooges here should learn." His voice took a bit of an edge with the last sentence. Murdock motioned for Sam to get up and come over to him.

With a wary glance at her kidnappers Sam slowly got up, pulling her hat back on and moved over to Murdock gladly. He took hold of her hand with his free one and pulled her behind him, giving her fingers a quick squeeze before letting go.

"Where are my men?" Travis asked the newcomer with the gun. He had a feeling he knew.

"They decided to get off at another stop." Murdock replied very calmly. Samantha was shocked at the answer and the way he said it. There was more than a little Clint Eastwood in that response.

At these words Bret seemed to snap, something Travis must have expected because Samantha saw him actually sigh in annoyance. The injured brother ran straight at Murdock, pulling his gun from its holster, his injury forgotten. Murdock sort of figured the guy was going to come at him. The half second tremor that had jerked his cheek had given it away. The injury and the anger were Bret's downfall.

Murdock pushed Samantha behind another crate, this one apparently filled with scotch. The idiot was going to start firing and by god he was not going to shoot his girl, not while he was breathing. Sure enough Bret fired wildly, his injured arm and rage causing it to miss Murdock by a mile but puncturing the airplane perfectly.

Travis tried to stop him. "You fucking moron. Stop shooting!" He yelled and turned trying to get the gun from the other man but it went off again, another wild bullet. The fight was on and Bret started screaming about his brother.

Murdock ducked behind the crate, checking on Samantha. "You alright Princess?" He asked her, reaching over and touching her cheek. Her eyes were wide behind her glasses but otherwise she looked okay.

Sam nodded, still in awe of the fact he'd managed to find her and had followed her onto the plane. "Yeah…Yeah I'm fine."

Murdock nodded, his fingers lingering there for a moment longer than was proper he supposed. Another bullet whizzed past and it was obvious the red head was no longer quite in charge of his thug. Murdock peeked over the top of the crate and saw that the two men were still struggling and that the plane was quickly becoming full of bullet holes. This wasn't good…and then Bret got a lucky or rather unlucky shot off that hit Travis square in the chest. Brett looked sort of surprised, but not nearly as surprised as Travis was.

The plane shuddered at that moment and Murdock got a funny look on his face. Oh, that wasn't good either. Well…that could wait for a minute. He had bigger fish to fry, like the big angry dude who wanted to kill them. He turned back to Samantha. "Stay here and keep your head down. I'll be back in a second." He handed her his gun. "Don't shoot this unless he's real close and you can't miss."

"Murdock no." She shook her head as he closed her fingers around the weapon.

"Yes. Do what I say. He's out of bullets." He told her in that steely voice again, grabbing her chin and making her look him in the eye. "You'll be okay Samantha. Just trust me."

He saw her nod finally and he jumped up and ran at the other man. Bret had realized the same thing as Murdock. He was out of ammo and just as Murdock knew he would, he was trying to get Travis's gun out of its holster. That's when Murdock tackled him. Travis's now lifeless body tumbled to the side and the two men fell to the floor, the ranger aiming for first a kidney with his right fist and then a knee to the groin (playing dirty, but the guy had tried to kill his girl.)

Bret still had the strength bred from anger in him though and countered with a left hook that caught Murdock off guard. The two men started trading punches and vicious blows as they rolled across the floor. Samantha didn't know what to do. She hadn't listened that well and she was watching the whole fight. She'd never seen him do this before…and my god was it impressive and at the same time horrifying to see him getting hit and keep going. She wasn't a good enough shot to be sure she'd not hit Murdock, not when the two of them were so close to one another. Sam cursed her own lack of usefulness again and prayed he'd be alright…but it was killing her to watch it.

The plane had another shudder ripple through it, this one a bit more severe. It threw Bret off balance enough that he missed a punch, tripping. Murdock was running out of steam at this point, adrenaline was wearing out and so was he. But he took the advantage the plane gave him and moved to the left. Bret's fist hit the side of the plane and Murdock's fist connected squarely with the bullet wound in his arm. Bret went down screaming. The ranger who by that point was pissed off in his own right kicked his booted foot square into Bret's face. The move was one he'd used a couple times before in his life when down and dirty and life or death was on the menu. It wasn't pretty but it did the job, sending the skull fragments right into the brain; one of the benefits of boots with really hard pointy tips.

Knowing it was over Murdock fell to his knees exhausted. Okay, that hadn't gone exactly as planned but he was still alive and more importantly so was Samantha. He sighed loudly, wincing at the aches that were already starting when he was suddenly tackled again, this time by a much more welcome attacker. "Oh my god are you okay? That was amazing and…my god you killed them and…you got on the plane…and Jesus are you okay? I couldn't shoot him…I'm so sorry…I could have hit you…and my god are you okay?"

Sam's voice was as hyper as his own sometimes got and she was squeezing the stuffing out of him which was just fine with Murdock, at least it would be if he hadn't taken a couple good shots to the ribs. But pain aside he wasn't going to complain. He'd earned a hug he decided, so he put one arm around her, and gave her a squeeze back. "I'm alright all things considered princess." He told her, his voice a bit weaker than before. "And I'm glad you were smart enough not to pull the trigger…I enjoy breathing too much." He made a move to stand up and she pulled back enough to help him.

"As for the killing em part…well…this is one of those cases where it was us or them." He glanced down at Bret and Travis where they lay. "I'd hazard a guess these two had this coming for a while." He looked over at her pale face. She was handling all of this better than he expected, but she could only handle so much. "Anyway…I don't want you having something like that rattling round in your noggin. You've got enough in there to deal with already. Me, I've got nothing but room up here." He gave her a crooked smile and gestured at his temple.

Samantha shook her head at him smiling and reached up, touching an already forming bruise on his chin. "You've got a lot going on up there Lancelot." She told him, her voice catching in her throat as she stared up into his green, green eyes. "Thank you for saving me again."

Murdock suddenly didn't feel quite as sore and achy or tired. In fact all he felt was her touch against his skin and it was pretty damn amazing. Was he really moving closer to her? Wait, was this what knights were supposed to do with princesses? Yes! Yes! One of those voices in his head said. You do exactly this! That voice proceeded to show him some interesting pictures in his brain and he was suddenly not cold anymore either. Okay, this wasn't part of the plan. So far his plan had been shot to hell as had the plane. Of course said plane decided at that moment before he could do anything that voice was telling him to do to shake like a maraca, nearly knocking them both down.

"Damn it…" Murdock muttered, catching hold of Samantha and making sure they didn't join the two dead guys on the floor.

"What was that?" Sam's voice rose a bit.

"That's what I was afraid of. Come on." He grabbed her hand, taking his gun from her and leading her towards the cockpit. He saw the bullet holes in the door and raised a brow. Murdock pushed it open and saw the pilot slumped over his on his side, a nice red stain spreading on his chest. Another hole was in the sparking instrument panel.

"Oh shit…" Sam's fingers tightened on his hand as she muttered the words.

"Not very lady like princess, but I'd say you're given a pass in this situation." Murdock move towards the console and checked the damage. "Yep, Oh Shit is definitely the appropriate response. Dumbass back there managed to kill the pilot and manual control. We're on autopilot and it's stuck." He glanced up through the windshield. Things were not looking good…specifically the large rock they were heading towards that was jutting out of that mountain didn't look good. They had maybe ten minutes before they hit the thing.

"New plan!" Murdock turned around quickly, grabbing Samantha's hand.

"New plan? What sort of plan? You can't fly this plane and I'm pretty sure the dead guy can't either." Sam told him.

"Mistress of the obvious as I told ya." Murdock said, heading back to the crate that had been their shielding. He ripped off the top and grabbed a bottle out, unscrewing the top and tossing it into a corner. He shoved it into Sam's shaking hand. "Here, drink."

"Drink? What the hell? Why am I drinking?" She asked him following him as he started rummaging around the main part of the plane. He knew these smuggler types well; they always had an escape plan if the plane got shot down. "Ah ha!" He found what he was looking for.

"That's….that's a parachute." Sam recognized it with a look of horror on her face.

"Yep, that's what it is." Murdock nodded. "You should start drinking now."

Sam immediately took a large swig of the scotch, not even wincing as it burned her throat. Murdock grabbed her hand again and started them towards the back of the plane. She kept taking pulls off the bottle as they walked. "This is nuts…(swig) this is beyond nuts (swig.)"

"Par for the course I'd say princess." Murdock pulled the parachute onto his back, hoping the thing worked. He'd gave it a quick look over and it appeared functional. "Keep drinking." He told her, belting it up.

"We've only got one…" Sam felt the effects of the scotch trying to hit her, but it wasn't quick enough for her taste.

"I noticed that too. Not that I'd let you take a leap out of here by yourself mind ya." Murdock walked over to wall and found what he was looking for. "I'm guessing you've never done a jump before."

"You…you'd be right…" She answered him shakily.

The pilot hooked one cable to the wall and the other to his belt. He then motioned to Samantha to come over to him. "That's why we jump together. I told ya I'd get you over that fear of flying you've got didn't I?" He told her with a crazy grin and twinkle in his eye.

"This is not really helping that…" She told him. Sam felt like she was going to faint, or puke or both. That wouldn't be pleasant for either of them.

"Give me that bottle." He told her, guessing she'd got enough in her to keep her at least a bit calm. He took a swig himself and then tossed it into the corner with a crash. "Okay get a little closer here." He pulled her near him, as close as he could get her actually and then pulled one of the luggage belts around the two of them, tightening it and buckling it into place. In any other situation this would have been a lot more pleasant. As it was, Murdock wasn't complaining too much as he found her pressed up against him and not able to run away screaming like he expected most ladies to do.

Sadly though, he could feel her trembling. "Hey now, you're gonna be alright." He told her softly. He pulled her cap off her head and shoved it in his jacket next to his. No letting that fly away while they were in the air, even if it did say airborne. She looked up at him, all mussy hair and big swirly eyes. This close he could see every color in em and they were beautiful. Air and water, sea and sky.

"Promise?" She asked him, her breath scented with the scotch she'd just drank. It wasn't at all unpleasant actually.

He leaned down and pulled her glasses off, putting them safely into the confines of his jacket alongside the caps. "I promise Samantha." He told her, whispering the honey southern words into her ear so she would be sure to hear them.

Samantha tried to tamp down her fear but it was hard. Murdock reached up and took her face in his hands, making sure she looked him in the eye and heard what he was saying. "You hold on as tight to me as you can, alright?" She nodded, wrapping her arms around his waist beneath the parachute. "Don't let go of me."

"Never."

Samantha may not have even realized she'd said it, but Murdock heard it and that one word made him seize up inside like he'd drank the whole bottle of that scotch in one gulp. Well that was that then. Murdock took a breath, held her still and did what he'd been wanting to do for a very, very long time. He kissed his princess.

She tasted like scotch and mint and warmth and god above it was awesome. He almost forgot what they were doing, but he didn't want to stop kissing her because she wasn't slapping him or screaming, she was actually kissing him back and that was even more awesome. Walking backwards and taking her with him he hit the release button of the rear cargo hold door with his elbow, quickly wrapping his arms back around her. The sound was deafening, the wind was vicious but he wasn't letting go. No sir, he'd be damned if he was letting her go.

Samantha gasped and jerked as everything got loud rushing past her ears. Murdock kept her steady though, even as she looked out into the sky they were about to plummet into. "Samantha." He had to yell even if they were right next to each other it was so loud and the air was so thin. She looked back at him. He smiled, even while his shaggy brown hair was whipped wild in the wind. "Do you trust me?"

Sam could still feel his lips on hers even in the chaos and craziness of this…she wanted to kiss him again. He could kiss. Like a pro. And he'd saved her and risked his life for her…and he was a badass and cute as hell. Especially when he was grinning at her like he was right then, getting ready to jump out of a crashing plane into a spinning whirlwind of crazy. Which was really appropriate since that was her life now, a spinning whirlwind of crazy. But she had her lord of lunacy to keep her safe. This was his specialty he'd told her before.

She tightened her old on him. "I trust you Murdock." And she leaned up and kissed him again, because if she was going to die, then by god she'd do it doing something fun.

He'd have laughed if his lips weren't already busy. Ah yeah she was his type of girl alright, his princess of the air for real. One arm tight around her, Murdock reached behind him and with one click unhooked the bungee cord. Wrapping his other arm around her he took a couple of steps and then they were falling through the air and didn't stop kissing for a second.


	29. Chapter 28

**DISCLAIMER: IT'S ALIVE! And man…this is one long chapter. But I think you Sam and Murdock fans will enjoy this one since it's nothing but Sam and Murdock. I promise we'll have more of the boys later. But for now, Murdock and his Princess have earned this chapter. And Samantha truly thinks they have. **

**I hope you enjoy it and it doesn't disappoint. And welcome new readers. Reviews are great and only three more and we'll have hit 300 which is sort of, well, crazy.**

**In closing I love you Copley you magnificent bastard and I can't wait to see you go all bad guy gruff and mean. Cause I have a sickness.**

**Chapter 28**

"Ouch…"

That word was pretty much the only thing on Murdock's mind as he lay flat on the ground staring up at the sky above him. Was ouch even a word or just a sound? He didn't really care at the moment. Nothing was broken; he knew that feeling too well. Nope he was just really sore, scratched up a bit but otherwise pretty lucky.

"Princess?" He lifted his head and saw her face was shoved into his chest. Her arms were still tight around his middle and she wasn't really moving. That worried him. "Samantha…hey..." He lifted his hand and touched her shoulder. "Baby, you okay?"

Samantha heard him from far away. Everything had been a really quick blur and at some point she'd sort of…passed out? She wasn't sure what had happened inside her brain. They'd jumped out of an airplane and they'd been kissing. OH yeah, she remembered that part of it.

But then the wind was just rushing by and she'd looked down to see nothing but ground really far away beneath them and everything was a blur again. And then there was a loud booming…and Murdock pulled the chute and they'd been yanked upward. She'd held onto him so tight she figured he'd break in two. After that it was sort of slowed down. Sam had shoved her face against his shoulder too afraid to look down. But then she had heard him whisper into her ear "We're flying Samantha. It's okay, we're okay and we're flying."

She'd dared a glance down and sure enough they were flying, floating really. "We're flying…" she said softly, the air hitting her face cold and chilly. It was sort of beautiful. Samantha tried to figure out when she'd sort of shut down and guessed it wasn't too long after that. The drinking booze so fast, thin air, adrenaline…it didn't mix well.

She was still belted to him and she was lying on top of him which probably wasn't helpful to her knight. Sam let out a painful groan and lifted her head slowly. "I don't know…" She managed to say.

Murdock had unhooked the chute and it was laying a good 30 feet away from them. He undid the buckle to the luggage belt and helped her set up slowly, checking her for injuries. She was really pale and she had some cuts and bruises on her arms. He noticed a couple spots on her face he'd not seen before…obviously made from a smack or a punch. Well, he didn't need to waste the time he would have hunting down those guys and murdering them. That had already been dealt with. His fingers touched a small cut near her temple and she winced. "Sorry baby…just checking to make sure you're all in one piece."

"I think I'm all here…" She muttered in reply, still not sure she could walk yet. Everything felt sort of jittery.

He grasped her chin and made her look him straight in the eye. He checked her pupils and they looked alright. Pretty as all heck actually those eyes of hers. "I don't think you've got a concussion, so plus one for our side." He smiled and then noticed she'd grown even paler. Oh he knew that look. Murdock stood up and helped her to stand, knowing she'd be unsteady. He had an arm around her waist holding onto to her tight. "Over here darlin." He said aiming her towards a small tree nearby. She looked at him funny, wondering what he was doing and then her eyes went wide and she barfed her guts up behind the tree in a fashion that would have made Linda Blair proud.

Murdock nodded rubbing her back as she was sick. Yep, first time jumping could do that to the strongest people in the best of situations. Her introduction to the fine art of jumping out of a plane had been chaotic at best. Plus he had had her chug down a decent amount of booze just to keep her calm. He felt more than a little guilty.

When she was finally done puking Sam wiped her mouth with the back of a shaky hand. That wasn't quite dignified or sexy in the least. But at least she hadn't got any on her clothes. "Uhg….I hate barfing." She managed to say.

Murdock reached into his jacket pocket and after a moment produced a stick of mint chewing gum. "Here you go baby."

Samantha gave him a half mumbled and embarrassed thank you and quickly popped the gum in her mouth, chewing vigorously. "Sorry about that…" She told him.

"I've seen men do that after going through a lot less than you just did princess. You're allowed." He gave her a gentle smile. "Feel better?"

Sam took a deep breath and nodded. "Yeah, just achy."

The pilot nodded. "I can relate to that." He reached into his jacket and handed her over her glasses which had managed yet again not to be destroyed. She put them on as he pulled out both their baseball caps. "Okay, we need to get moving. That plane going up and the parachute aren't going to go unnoticed." He handed her hat over, popping his own over his very mussy brown hair.

"You think they are going to come after us?" Sam asked him, nervously, putting her hat on too.

"Well, they may think we are dead…but if anyone saw that all go down most likely they know somebody jumped out of the plane before it went up." He took hold of her hand and started leading her along the field towards what he hoped was somewhere they could rest up. "If they don't hear from their goons, and are smart, they are going to figure out it wasn't one of their boys that made it out alive."

"Crap, you're right." Sam muttered aloud.

"Usually am. Most people just don't realize it." Murdock remarked as they walked the uneven ground. He had very little of an idea of where they were. He figured it was Southern Oregon or Northern California. But that was just a guess. If he'd had more time in the cockpit he could have figured it out, but imminent death sort of made that less of a priority.

He'd had a view from on high while they were heading back down to earth and he remembered seeing a road, probably a highway not too far from where they were. A few larger buildings…what looked like a truck stop maybe? That meant food, rest, and a chance to figure out exactly where the hell they were. Also a chance to contact the team, which was a priority, not the least of which reason was to get the reaming he'd receive done and over with for going against orders. But damn it…she'd have been gone and…well he couldn't even think about that.

They walked in silence for a while, Murdock keeping a hold on her hand. He wasn't normally quiet. But his brain kept rewinding to that first kiss on the plane, and then the second one. Should he say something about that? Should he even bring it up? Damn, did she even remember it since she'd been drinking fast and scared? Why couldn't he have been born with at least 1/10th of Face's way with the ladies?

Murdock decided to let it be for a while. He needed to stay focused on the task at hand which was getting them out of harm's way. With a heavy sigh he kept them moving, finally seeing the highway in the distance.

"Where do you think we are?" Samantha asked him, her voice not nearly as shaky as before. That was a good sign he decided.

Murdock came to a stop, giving them a chance to rest. He led her over to a large tree stump that had seen better days but would hold both of them. The both sat down heavily. The pilot looked around. "I'm guessing Southern Oregon. Area looks about right and from where we were and the amount of time on the plane…yeah…pretty close to the California border."

"Almost home…" She said softly looking away into the distance.

Murdock glanced over at her. She had that look on her face again. Not the yakking up her dinner look, but the haunted closing herself off look. "Hey now…no more of that." He pulled on her shirt sleeve until she turned back to him. "Stop trying to wander off in your noggin and leave me here all by my lonesome. I know the signs." He frowned at her. "You need a slush puppy."

Sam couldn't help it. The randomness of what he just said made her snap out of her worry. "Do what?"

"Slush puppy. Pure sweet chemically colored sugary goodness coating little discs of ice." Murdock smiled. "Turn your tongue Smurf blue and everyone will look at you funny….but you don't care because you are out of your mind on a sugar high of epic proportions. Ain't nothing like it…" He grinned broadly, "Unless of course you've got a Fudge Round to eat with it. And then you're nigh on unstoppable."

Samantha didn't think she could possibly find the man any more attractive, but the mention of Fudge Rounds made her realize she was wrong. "Little Debbie is the devil's concubine." She said laughing at last.

The pilot cocked an eyebrow and in a perfect imitation of Gary Oldman's accent in Dracula said "The chocolate fairy that lives in the Fudge Round wants your soul, but you are safe with me."

Sam shook her head at him grinning despite how down right horrible the situation they were in was. "Take me away from all this grass." She told him, unable to keep a straight face.

Murdock grinned widely and brought her knuckles up to his lips and planted a very princely kiss on them. "I shall do just that princess. Shall we?"

They followed the highway in the direction Murdock hoped he'd seen all the semi's parked. It was about another hour or so before the bright lights of the truck stop came into view. It was full dark and all the walking was causing every ache and bruise Murdock had to hurt twice as much. His biggest concern though was Samantha of course. She needed food and sleep. Actually they both needed food and sleep. And probably a first aid kit and some aspirin. And most assuredly a disposable phone so he could contact the team.

Sam seemed to glue herself to his side when they stepped into the parking lot of the place, giant rigs running in and out around them. Hell, there were even lot lizards that Murdock noticed. Not the classiest women in the world. He didn't care about that though. There was an honest to goodness Motel next door and all he could think about was a shower and real bed.

The truck stop was a big one. It had a fast food area with three different types of junk food places, a gift shop (yep, they were at the border of Oregon and California) and sort of a mini department store for truckers and travelers. Murdock headed to the department store first, Sam tagging along. He grabbed two of their toiletry sets (1 for a woman and 1 for a man) Samantha sneered at the pink color coordination for the girls set but was just happy for a toothbrush and toothpaste. He told her pink and princesses went together like Oreos and milk. She'd glared at him, and he quickly headed towards the medicine aisle.

There was a blessed first aid kit and a big bottle of aspirin. The pilot grabbed those and then hit the snack food aisle. There were the Fudge Rounds, giant and cheap and beautiful. He'd grabbed four of them along with a big bag of Cheetos because he'd freaking earned it and so had Sam. The disposable phones were near the front and locked in a case. He bought one of those as well as a 100 minutes of time on the device.

Sadly there was no slush puppy machine. But Murdock made up for that lack of sugar by buying two of the largest Cokes he could. It was his turn to glare at Samantha when she protested trying to get him to get her a Diet one instead. She'd quickly hushed up. He told her to get into line at her choice of eatery and he'd go pay for their newly acquired booty.

While in line Murdock soon realized he'd been right about the plane. There it was on the local news, a gang of police circling the wreckage. And then his worst fear was confirmed when some dork with a camera phones video was shown of the mystery chute that had appeared near the plane. Christ, they'd been lucky no one had found them yet.

She'd picked the burger place because it was easy, and in her own words "the fries smelled like god's breath."

Murdock had cocked another eyebrow at that. "You sure you don't have a concussion?" He asked her.

"No but I could eat your jacket at this point." Sam replied giving him a look at both scared and intrigued him.

Two cheeseburgers and two large fries later, Murdock and Sam were no longer hungry. Murdock had been fairly quiet, focusing on his food. He didn't think Sam had noticed the news footage, but he wasn't going to worry her about that yet. A good night's sleep wouldn't be that good with that weighting her down.

They headed to the motel. It wasn't the Ritz, but at this point a ditch was looking comfortable. Murdock paid the guy in cash for a room, grabbed the key, and headed down a hallway that's carpeting looked like the outside of the Partridge Family bus.

They came to room 12 and Murdock opened the door with a prayer on his lips that there was no skittering noises when the light was turned on. He flipped the switch and Samantha's head peered over his shoulder. "Well dang, this is better than I was expecting." The pilot said, pushing the door open. There was a TV that was less than five years old, worn but clean carpeting, typical round table and two chairs and a clean bathroom with a shower. There was also a lone queen sized bed but he Murdock hadn't had a choice in that. Apparently the one or two rooms with two beds had been taken by families. At this point the floor looked clean and he wasn't going to mind it at all.

Samantha looked around surprised too. She hadn't been expecting much but the room was decent and clean and my god did she want to brush her teeth. "Bag please?" She asked him, holding out her hand.

Murdock gave a little chuckle and handed his princess her pretty pink bag. She immediately ran into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. Murdock tossed the plastic bag with the rest of their loot onto the table after taking out the first aid kit and the aspirin. He put that on the bed and then shrugged off his jacket, tossing it over the back of a chair along with his hat.

With a heavy sigh he sat down on the mattress and then just fell backwards staring up at the ceiling. The level of crazy he was could only do so much in the exhaustion and damage done to himself department. The last few days had been doozies and now it seemed his body knew it could take a moment to remind him how much of a jerk he'd been to it.

Groaning just a bit he sat back up and decided to check for how bad it was. There was a wall mirror next to a floor lamp by the bed. He pulled his t-shirt over his head and looked at what he knew would be the black and blue of his ribs. Yep…they were already bruised and looked like he was trying to turn into Violet Beauregard after chewing that gum. There were the scars of course…the ones that were from who knew how many fights before that one that littered his chest. A couple more bruises showing near his collar bone. He had another one showing up near his cheek. He turned so he could check his back for anything that might be worrisome.

The crisscross of deep, ragged lines there weren't anything new. He took a breath as another one of those random great memories screamed through his head of how those came to be a part of his personal landscape. He'd learned to ignore those usually, but he wasn't at his best or anywhere near a hundred percent right then.

This was probably why he hadn't noticed Samantha staring at him for who knew how long and seeing exactly what he wouldn't have wanted her to see in a million years. In fact he nearly tripped trying to get his shirt back in place and instead sat down heavily on the mattress and trying to look at anything else other than her big pretty eyes that had been filled with what he knew had to be pity. And damn it, he did not want that ever from her.

Samantha could tell immediately he was…well…maybe embarrassed wasn't the right word. But my god…those marks on his back… She hadn't meant to stare, but she'd never seen so much of him at once before either. And what the hell had he been through to make those? Part of her brain was also telling her "Damn…you were right about the chest weren't you? Woo!"

"I thought you might want some water for the aspirin." She said and knew how lame she sounded as she spoke it.

She walked over to him and placed the glass on the night stand. He still wouldn't look at her, even as he mumbled a "thanks…"

Samantha sat down next to him. After all they'd gone through….and god knows that whole kissing on the plane and in the air plummeting to possible doom thing…he didn't get to be the one to shut down on her. He'd made it clear she wasn't allowed to chicken out like that so he couldn't either.

Sam pushed the nerves down and licking her lips turned to face him. She took a breath hoping this wouldn't blow up in her face. "I want to see." She told him softly.

The pilot looked at her like she'd just screamed "I'm on fire and covered in Jell-O."

Sam touched his hand and felt him jerk just the tiniest bit. "I want to see." She said again.

He swallowed thickly, feeling more than a little exposed and not knowing what to do. He turned to stare at the floor again. "Why?" He asked her at last, his voice sounding fragile…something she'd never heard him sound like before.

She slipped her fingers around his hand and came to kneel in front of him, so he had to see her. She gave him a smile so sweet he doubted he'd ever see its equal again. She looked up at him with those sea and sky eyes that wouldn't let go of his tired heart and said the words he needed to hear. "Because it's part of you."

Murdock felt something shift inside of himself, or maybe die and come back to life. He wasn't sure how to describe it or if there were words that could. But hearing her say that…and realizing it wasn't pity in her face but something else, well he supposed it healed part of that tired heart that she'd grabbed onto. He took a deep breath and pulled off the t-shirt, still not quite able to meet her gaze.

Up close the ones on his chest and arms were strangely beautiful. She knew it was an odd thought but she'd never really been called normal. Samantha reached up hesitantly to one close to his collar bone, barely touching it. Murdock flinched just the tiniest bit at the contact of her warm fingers. "What happened here?" She asked him her voice gentle, nearly a whisper. He was like a spooked pony ready to run.

He remembered all of them of course. "Bullet during a rescue mission in Kabul." He told her. He felt her fingers gently run along his shoulder to the cluster of marks on his bicep. He tried really hard not to shake.

"What about here?" She asked him.

Murdock took a shuddery breath. "Shrapnel from a crash during a raid in Iraq."

Sam saw another scar near the Ranger tattoo on his other arm. Her left hand reached up and she placed her fingers lightly over it. "This one?"

"Knife wound during a fight with an enemy insurgent." Why wasn't she freaking out yet?

Instead Samantha touched another spot just a few inches up from his rapidly beating heart. This one was bigger than the others, looked deeper and a lot more fatal. "Here?" she asked, her voice still that gentle whisper that was making him keep his fingers curled around the threadbare comforter he was sitting on instead of grabbing her and…well…he didn't know what he would do.

Everything was going haywire. So instead he just answered her truthfully. "Gunshot...bad aim…I won." The implication on that answer was pretty clear.

There were other ones, some smaller and some not so small. The ones on his back though, those were the winners. She hadn't asked about those yet, though he knew she probably wanted to. Of course the ones a life like his had left on the inside were the real doozies. But she wasn't freaked out. She wasn't disgusted. Why? How? How could she be so god damn beautiful and not horrified by all of the scars? Finally he couldn't take it anymore.

He was fast and she knew that, but he was suddenly standing and so was she, and he was holding both her wrists in his hands. He wasn't hurting her, but the look in his now very dark green eyes was strange. Why was he looking at her like that?

He was just staring at her, close enough that he could count the freckles on her nose and see the scratches on her glasses. They weren't quite unscathed after all. Murdock couldn't help it everything was just riled...crazy…and he knew crazy. This was something beyond that. He could see she was starting to get a bit scared maybe. Well he was used to that. But that didn't answer his question. So he finally asked her. "Why aren't you afraid? How can you touch me?"

Samantha wasn't expecting him to ask that at all. The way the words came out was so brittle…broken. Like parts of him were she supposed. Like parts of her were. "Lancelot…" She smiled at him again, hoping he'd see she was telling him the god's honest truth. "Each of these means you survived it. You made it, no matter how much hell you went through you were tougher than whatever it was that tried to stop you. I hope I can be like you when this is over. They're beautiful because it means you lived." His fingers slipped away from her wrists and he just stood there again, staring at her like she'd grown a second head.

Finally he spoke and Samantha didn't know what to make of it when he asked her "Are you…are you real? Where'd you come from?" His southern drawl becoming more pronounced again and the words actually sounding suspicious.

She raised her eyebrows at that. "I think I'm real." She answered him, slightly confused.

Murdock still wasn't sure but he'd be the judge of that. Without hesitation and with no warning he pulled her into his arms and kissed her like he had on the plane. After a few breathless seconds he let her have some air, but still had his arms around her in case she tried to float away like a dream or run…neither of which he was going to let happen. "That felt pretty real."

Sam nodded, her glasses actually steamed up and her hands resting on his very well formed shoulders. This shirtless thing was quickly becoming her new favorite fashion statement by him. "Uh…yes. Real. Uh huh." The fact she could speak was amazing.

Murdock decided he needed more research. Research was fun and important and she tasted like peppermint. So he kissed her again taking his time and managing to make it back to the bed without tripping and injuring them. He very carefully leaned back her back onto the mattress, ready for her to realize she needed to head back to heaven at any moment because the only thoughts going through his brain were way more than sinful.

She still wasn't screaming or running away. In fact she was holding onto him with as much gusto as he was holding her. All of those pictures of what knights and ladies did came unbidden back to his head, crashing through any of the bad memories that might have tried to ruin this perfect moment. By god he wasn't going to let that happen. No way.

Her naughty little fingers ran down his back and along his side and he shuddered. She stopped kissing him and pulled away a little and Murdock wanted to pout like a two year old. "I didn't hurt you did I?" She asked him, her voice reminding him of that time in the parking lot she'd fell into his arms. Warm, whispery and making him want to shake all over again.

"God no…no..." He realized then she'd been banged up pretty badly too. "I'm not hurting you am I?"

Samantha grinned up at him "Exact opposite."

That grin was infectious and he grinned back and then realized the glasses were just going to get in the way, so he very quickly removed those from the equation, popping them over onto the nightstand. Seeing her look up at him so trustingly when he turned back to her was a little daunting. He felt very unworthy of that look and of what he was obviously doing right now.

Samantha saw the hesitation. She'd come to a decision a less than a minute ago when he'd started kissing her and he was NOT going to chicken out. The decision was based on a few things. Firstly she really really really liked her knight. Secondly, she could be killed at any moment in the next few days…so she was going to have fun that she'd most definitely earned. And thirdly, her knight was going to have fun he had most assuredly earned too. So yes, fun was going to be had.

"Lancelot…you do not leave your princess in distress…that's a very unhonorable thing to do." She told him in all seriousness and while he was distracted by what she said she leaned up and after placing a trail of kisses along his rather long neck, she nipped his ear.

Murdock made a strangled cry that he didn't think he'd ever heard come out of his mouth before, and he'd made some odd noises in his day. But when her teeth clamped down on his ear and then her lips did...whatever damn magic they were doing to his neck. His brain just stopped. It just stopped. He kicked it into gear again because he needed to live up to his epic reputation as a knight. He could not leave his princess in distress. No he would never leave a lady in distress, and especially not this one. But there was one thing he needed to say.

"James…" He breathed the name against her cheek, his lips brushing her jaw. "My name…my first name…is James."

Sam moved to look up at him as he peered down at her through that messy brown hair. His eyes were clear and green and she knew she was seeing the real deal look out through them and straight into her. She grinned knowing she was purely snookered, a phrase her dad had used to describe the day he'd met her mom. She was well and truly snookered. She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. "Hi James." She said, leaning her forehead against his.

"Hi Samantha." He replied. "Nice to meet you." James Murdock smiled brushing his fingers through her hair which still smelled too damn good.

"Nice to meet you too." She told him and they laughed knowing they had at least tonight before the craziness of the real world descended back into their lives. And they proceeded to have a lot of fun.


	30. Chapter 29

**Disclaimer: I still don't own anything but my original characters. Except the action figure of Murdock I look at longingly trying to figure out how to 1. Make him lifesize 2. Make him alive.**

**Authors Note: Long chapter. Still just Sam and Murdock but I got inspired and figured we needed to have this out now rather than later. Plus these two are fun and angsty to write…hence why this is so long. I promise more Team members show up in the next one. **

**I hope you enjoy it. Its Memorial Day weekend so an A-Team update had to happen**

**Chapter 29**

Murdock didn't sleep well. That just was how he was built now. If he got three hours without waking up suddenly or without waking up screaming that was a good night for him. So when he woke up as he normally did, eyes popping open and completely alert with a slight bit of "where the hell am I?" in his head that was normal. What wasn't was when he looked at the cheap clock radio on the night stand and saw that he'd been asleep for over four hours. And he hadn't woke up screaming. And there was something really soft and warm wrapped around him that was breathing.

The pilot looked down to find his arms wrapped around a sleeping princess, one that he was pretty sure wasn't wearing a stitch of clothing (something he seemed to remember being the reason for.) Her head was nestled quite comfily on his chest. Murdock thought for a moment he was dreaming or still dreaming or had died and gone to his version of heaven. Then he remembered that no, this was all very real and he'd had a lot of fun that night with the angel in his arms.

And she was an angel or some hybrid of an angel and a princess and Emma Peel. Like, the perfect woman he supposed. Holy crap how'd he manage this? And what was he gonna do now? "How do I keep her? I have to keep her I mean, I can't just not keep her….I mean not like a pet but I have to keep her. I sort of need her? She's like magic and awesome and I just woke up and she's right here and I think she's smiling and oh damn I think I gave her a hickey."

He'd realized too that he was just as unclothed as she was. She was responsible for that. He remembered quite suddenly her saying something to the effect of him being like a "teddy bear with a swimmers bod." Apparently she didn't mind the fact that god had deemed fit to bless him with a decent amount of chest hair. Well Face could kiss that whole going to be waxed thing he kept trying to goad him into goodbye now for sure. Plus…that just seemed unnatural and painful.

Murdock hadn't really moved much yet. He was almost afraid to. What if she woke up and realized she'd made a horrible mistake letting him…well…do what they had done? That twinge came back full force in the center of his chest that had started in the rec room. He winced at the thought and the pain that twinge caused him. She wouldn't do that would she? Not his princess…no…not Samantha.

She'd been perfect. Sweet and warm and he'd just never had a night like that before. There'd been girls of course. High School and some through his time being deployed and going through training. But none of them had been her. And he sadly realized he couldn't remember waking up with a woman in his arms still there after all was said and done.

When things had started going south for him in the brains department there hadn't been anyone. His reputation and just who he was, that wasn't the sort of deal a gal would consider a catch. Not like Face for example. But Samantha hadn't been scared or horrified. She'd seen him, the real him. And she was still here. And she had teeth like a damn panther. He didn't think his ear or his shoulder were going to be the same, even with all the scars.

His jumble of thoughts was interrupted by her stirring next to him. Murdock looked down to find her frowning, a line between her brows. Her breath against his skin started to come faster as she seemed to be in the throes of a bad dream. "Lancelot…" he could barely hear her, her eyes weren't opening but her fingers curled up in a fist where they lay against his chest. She was having a nightmare and she was calling for him to help her.

He leaned down, letting his hand run up and down her bare shoulder trying to soothe whatever bad things she was seeing away. "I'm here baby. I'm here." He said softly, placing a kiss against her forehead. "I'm not going anywhere."

It seemed to work. Her fingers unclenched, her face relaxed and he saw that strange little smile come back to her. "James…" He distinctly heard her sweet voice sigh.

It wasn't a twinge that socked him that time. It was more like a kick. Murdock closed his eyes and rested his chin against her hair. Yep, he wasn't going anywhere for a while. He hoped she had an idea of what she'd gotten herself into. He doubted it. She'd just saddled herself with a clinically diagnosed lunatic (functioning) for the rest of her natural life. And after that was over he was sure he'd find a way to follow her wherever she was after that, hell (he doubted it) heaven (most likely which meant he'd have to sneak in). Dedication thy name was James Murdock.

He couldn't bring himself to really move at all after that. He didn't sleep but he just held her and enjoyed it. He felt calm, well calmer, than he had in a long time. It wasn't long though until the sounds of increased activity outside told him he needed to get up and contact the team with their location and get an idea of what options they had and just how exposed they were. Plus he'd worked up an appetite and breakfast was the most important meal of the day. He'd see if he could find something passable for them to eat, still longing for a chance to show off his chef skills. Soon, he promised himself. She'd get the full on Murdock experience of Culinary Epicness.

After a few minutes he managed to pry himself out of her spider monkey like arms. He reminded himself never to describe her arms to her in that fashion, not a good idea. She still hadn't woke up yet, which meant she was beat and needed the rest. It took another few minutes for him to find all of his clothes. He made a mental note to snag them both a change of wardrobe. Who knew how long it would take the Team to get there. After a quick shower, semi shave, and tooth washing he walked back out to find her in the same spot he left her. He grinned, shaking his head and kneeled down near the bed.

"Samantha…hey princess, I need you a little bit conscious." He touched her arm and gave it a jiggle. He was rewarded with a groan and no movement. "Baby I need a bit more conscious than that." He jiggled her arm again and this time was rewarded with one eye opening. "There we go."

Sam looked up through a haze of half sleep to see her knight beaming at her. He was dressed and looked freshly showered and far too perky. Then again after last night she knew just how perky he could be. That thought and all that came with it caused her to blush down to the roots of her hair. She pulled the blankets tighter around herself and gave him an embarrassed, tired smile. "Hi…" She managed to say.

Murdock took hold of her hand where it was bunched up in the blankets and gave it a squeeze. "Hi." He paused taking a minute to make sure he had enough will power to actually not jump back into that bed with her. Yep, he could do it but it wasn't his first choice. "I have to go out for a bit. I need you to promise me you're not going to go out anywhere and you will not open that door for anyone at all." He gestured behind him.

Sam looked up at him and actually pouted. "Why do you have to leave?" Her voice was still rough from sleep and she was still half asleep so her brain was still playing catch up…and why wasn't he her pillow? He made a nice one.

"Ugh…not helping the not jumping back into bed debate." Murdock thought to himself and sighed. She was pouting and it was killing him slowly. He tried to get her to focus a little more. "I've got to let the guys know where we are baby. Whatever info I can get on what our situation is as it stands too. And food is always a good thing right?"

Samantha managed to power through another layer of tired and understood what he was saying. She nodded yes. "Okay. I won't open the door and I'm not going anywhere."

He gave her that crooked grin of his. "Alright, I'll be back as quick as I can." Without hesitation he leaned down and kissed her cheek, then headed for the door. He paused with his hand on the knob, glancing back. "No opening the door. Stay right here." He said, worry crossing his face.

Her head fell back on the pillow and she gave him a thumb's up. "Understood, not moving…not going anywhere. No door."

The pilot walked outside, half expecting to see police cars or black, unmarked vehicles waiting right there for him. But there was no one. The sun was bright though and the hive of activity that was the truck stop was in full swing. It was around 8am and the place was jumping. Murdock thought it was a Wednesday but he wasn't sure.

He walked towards a quiet and less active section of the parking lot away from prying ears and eyes. He punched in the number for the secure voice mail that one of the teams more tech savvy friends had set up for them for message relaying. Untraceable as yet, it was Murdock's only chance right then to get a message to the Colonel and his fellow Rangers.

"Tubbs, this is Crockett…" A Vice call was code for "pick me up here, yes I'm alive." He hoped Face would remember to check the damn machine. After using the code they'd come up with for location and the actual phone number for his drop cell, Murdock hung up.

It was time for food and getting an idea of how much danger they were in staying put. He'd rather not go on the run. He'd rather wait for the team to get there and then leave. But going on the run might be even more dangerous than staying. He needed an idea of what was up. With a heavy sigh he pocketed the phone and headed into the truck stop.

Samantha finally got completely awake a few minutes after Murdock had left. She sat up in the bed with the blankets around her and realized "Yep, I just made it with an actual escaped mental patient…" That thought was quickly followed by "And I too am an escaped mental patient, who am I to judge?" Followed by "And he was freaking amazing… oh god…what do I do now?"

She fell out of the bed with an ungraceful thud and a curse. She remembered that Murdock had put her glasses on the nightstand. Sam groped around and found them, putting them on while she sat in the floor in the mass of blankets and stared at the wall.

He hadn't talked about it. Sure he'd kissed her cheek and had grinned at her…but he hadn't said anything and she was just all...naked. Wow. "Argh…" Her head fell back onto the mattress and she glared at the ceiling. "What's gonna happen now Sam?" She asked herself out loud. She really liked him. A lot. But there was no way this was going to end with them running off to a castle or happily ever after, was there?

She sighed…relationships have problems all the time, challenges…the two of them could figure this out. What if he didn't want a relationship? What if she'd been fooled by all of the adorableness and the way he made her laugh when she should be bawling her eyes out? He was nuts wasn't he? But so was she, so that wasn't really an excuse anymore. Sam knew that all that had happened had affected her way more than she wanted to admit.

But her safe harbor was the man she'd just spent the night with…and she hoped that that wasn't going to ruin a friendship that she was sort of relying on for her life and to help get through all that was happening. Plus, a voice in her head admitted, she really wanted to have a repeat of last night's performance because…wow.

"There's nothing for it Sam, you're snookered. And you're just going to have to figure it out." She told herself aloud, and realized not for the first time that the talking to herself was another sign of how bad things had gotten in her noggin. She groaned and figured a good first step would be getting clothes on, probably a shower…and not in that order. She'd deal with this and the fact that she was going to be heading back home soon later. She couldn't think about that actually without wanting to crawl back into a ball of numbness.

So…delay it. She stood up and hunted about for her clothes that her knight had managed to toss around the motel room with quite the throwing arm. Then again…she'd been guilty of some of that too. Sam caught herself grinning widely as she remembered him slipping into a line from Next of Kin, the eternal Patrick Swayze's delivery of "Do you believe in the hereafter? Then you know what I'm here after" Gathering up her clothes she headed to the bathroom.

In the daylight coming through the frosted windows and the lone bulb in the ceiling she finally got a look at the bruises she'd collected over the last few days. She'd not had time to notice, but there they were. No wonder she was so damn tired. She turned the shower on full blast and hot as she could stand it and just stood there for a good ten minutes. She used the shampoo and body wash that the annoyingly pink bag held. When she was done she dried off, brushed her teeth and used the cutesy flowery deodorant that came with the equally cutesy bag and felt a little better about things.

Samantha flopped down on the bed, hair still a little damp but at least dressed and clean and awake. God, coffee would be good right then. But she wasn't allowed to go out and the room didn't have a coffee maker and complimentary crap coffee. So instead she settled for trying to find something on television while she waited for her knight to come back with good news and possible breakfast.

She glanced over at the cheap table near the window and saw the Fudge Rounds taunting her. No…no she wouldn't gobble one of them up like a crack addict, that would just be rude. She grabbed the remote and started flipping around. Hey at least there was cable. And woo hoo, there was William Powell and Myrna Loy and Asta. Sometimes having a slight case of ADD was helpful. Sam quickly got engrossed in the Thin Man, so much so that when the door was opened twenty minutes later she screeched and fell off the bed again.

"Hey it's just me!" Murdock kicked the door closed as he was once again weighted down with bags. He probably should have knocked, but well…she wasn't armed at least.

"Sorry…I didn't mean to yelp." Sam stood up and came over to help him with the bags. She took the one giving off the smell of delicious calorie filled goodness and put it on the table. "How'd it go contacting the team?"

The pilot went over and tossed his remaining bag onto the bed and then handed her a large paper cup he'd held onto. "Message left, now we wait. And this is for you because I figured you'd be jonesing."

"You brought me coffee!" Sam looked as though she might swoon when she lifted the plastic lid and sniffed. "Real coffee..." She sighed and took a sip. Murdock watched with a new level of interest and wondered how he could steal the apparent appeal of a beverage.

"Yep, real as this place makes anyhow." He told her taking off his jacket and hat and then rummaging around in the plastic bag on the bed. "If that box is still secure, which I think it is, I'll be getting a call." He pulled out a pair of the wannabe Levi's that the place sold called "Revis" and plunked them down on the bed "I got us some clothes. There's some jeans for ya, and here's a shirt." He turned and tossed a blue t-shirt at her which she snagged with one hand.

Sam put her coffee down and held the sleeves out. Emblazoned on the front of the shirt was Voltron, the lion team version. She squealed. "The good Voltron! I had every damn toy from this! I used to dream about piloting that blue lion."

Murdock grinned. He'd picked a Snoopy vs. The Red Baron for himself of course. But he'd figured his gal was a Voltron chick, especially since there was a bad ass princess in the show. "I'm taking it I chose well."

"You win!" She grinned at him and Murdock mentally high fived himself.

He walked back over to the table then pulled out two Styrofoam containers and plastic utensils from the bag there. "Sit and eat princess before this gets cold."

Sam did as he instructed and found he'd got her yet another omelet, this one of the Denver variety. "This looks good…thank you." She told him, digging into the cheesy hash browns. "They seem to like cheese here."

Murdock nodded having taken a bite of his own food. "Can't fault them for that." He told her and dug in.

They ate while the TV droned on in the background, not really talking that much from that point on. They'd both realized this was the first time they'd been back in the room together since the night before. Well the two of them and the newly birthed elephant that was smack in the middle of the floor staring them both down.

Sam wondered if this was what awkward silence might be like. She wondered if she should be the one to say something. Every so often she caught his forest green eyes looking at her and then they'd quickly glance away, suddenly interested in something on the television.

She took a drink of orange juice, having inhaled her coffee trying to read his expressions without being too obvious. Her knight looked jittery and as though he wanted to say something…but he wasn't. A silent Murdock was an odd creature. Hmmm…what could she do about this that wasn't obvious? Because she wasn't going to be able to handle being on the run or whatever it was they were if they couldn't talk about what happened last night ever. And she wanted to know exactly what that all meant and…this was just awkward. Finally Sam decided enough was enough.

"You must really trust me." She said, swallowing the last of her OJ and tossing the bottle perfectly into the trash can.

The pilot looked a little surprised and turned back to her. "Huh?"

She pointed at the cakes still untouched. "You left me alone with those chocolate death discs and I didn't even touch em."

Murdock nodded, giving her a nervous smile. "Well…yeah of course I trust ya. You're a princess. Goodness and honesty are sort of the requisite for that."

Sam raised a brow behind her glasses, a knowing look on her face. "The same goes for a knight too. Honesty, that's a big one for knights."

Uh oh…there was something happening here. Murdock had a feeling in his gut telling him she was up to shenanigans. Maybe it was the way her swirly eyes were zeroing in on him like she was about to fire a rocket into his forehead, or how that eyebrow of hers was all cocky. "Honesty and duty, that's what we knights are made of." He told her, closing the lid on the now empty food container.

"So if I asked you a question you have to answer it truthfully…right?" Samantha narrowed her eyes at him.

Murdock visibly gulped. "Yes…" He answered hesitantly. Oh good lord what was she going to ask him? Because he couldn't lie to her, he just didn't work that way. Not to her…oh damn.

Sam pondered for a few seconds. He looked scared and she wondered if she wanted to hear what his answer would be if she actually asked him the big question she had. She might be better off not knowing. If he told her "Yep, just a one night stand baby" or worse yet "Well I decided you could pay me back one way for helping ya." She'd probably just go crawl into a corner and cry herself sick or dead. Yeah, not knowing might be the better option along with blissful ignorance.

"Kirk or Picard?" she asked him at last, chickening out but still sort of curious which one he'd pick.

The pilot looked confused then thoughtful. "That's a debate for the age's princess, and it might take a while." He had a feeling that wasn't what she was actually going to ask him. Her expression had been far more serious. Even though the merits of which of the two Captains of the Enterprise was the better one was an important question in the universe, no doubt of that.

Sam actually laughed and stood up, gathering the remnants of their breakfast. "You can think about it then and tell me later." She put everything in the bag it had come in and walked over to the trashcan. "Honestly I was always partial to Lt. Barclay myself. I'm a sucker for a guy with a great imagination." She said smiling. Murdock raised his own eyebrow at that comment.

After tossing away the trash Sam wandered back over to her chair, grabbing the shirt she'd hung on it off the back. She was heading over to fold it and put it away when Murdock stood up and touched her arm. He had a strange expression on his face.

He'd been avoiding it. He knew that and he felt like a coward, but he couldn't take another second of not knowing. Although knowing might be worse…at least it would give him time to prepare for the inevitable. When all this was over and she was safe and the men who wanted her dead were locked away (or preferably, in Murdock's opinion, dead themselves) she'd leave him. Back to whatever level of normal her life would be after what she'd gone through, but it would be far more normal than what his life was. What could he offer her? Even though he'd beg or at least plead a little…but she'd leave because why would she ever want to stay with a guy like him?

But he had to try didn't he? That part of himself that kept him alive and had made him a Ranger gave him that bit of courage to at least try. "Samantha…" He started to speak but found his voice leave him for a heartbeat. He started again after taking a deep breath. "Samantha about…what happened last night…" Oh Christ, just tell her stupid. "I just…I wanted you to know…"

Oh crap…Sam's eyes widened. Oh crap oh crap… "Murdock you don't have to say anything." She told him quickly. "I get it. I really do…you don't have to explain. You've got a life of your own and that's okay."

That stopped him. What did she think he was going to say? What the hell did any of that mean? Why was her lip trembling and why were her hands shaking like that? And now she was pacing and saying something about him being a leaf on the wind but then she smacked herself on the head and mumbled about that being a bad reference. Was it possible he'd found a gal crazier than he was? Things were leaning that way from what he could tell and that was truly a feat.

He took a second to figure out the best way to proceed and then went over and stopped her pacing, taking hold of her shoulders and staring her in the eye. It dawned on him then what she thought he was going to say, and it rankled him. "You think that was just a one night stand to me don't you." His voice was harsh yet barely over a whisper. It wasn't a question. It was stated as fact because he could tell from the look in her eyes…she'd been prepared for him to say as much.

Sam looked away and he shook her, making her have to pay attention. "How?" Now he was asking a question because he really had no idea how she could even fathom that being how he felt.

"I don't know…" God don't cry Samantha…don't you dare cry. She took a deep breath and let it out trying to explain how her rattled brain was rationalizing it.

"Am I that far wrong about you being smart?" He asked her, fighting down the urge to throw something through the wall.

Sam let out a frustrated half scream, wanting to punch something and he was the closest thing she had. But he was already banged up enough. "Everything else is gone, so why would you stay?" She told him finally. "When this is over James, why would you stay? How could you stay?" At that his hands slipped from her shoulders and he looked at her like she really had punched him.

Sam's eyes were glossy with tears. She could feel them floating there. She hated crying but she couldn't help it again…god it was annoying. She looked at the floor, anywhere else but where he stood. "In case…in case I don't make it through this I wanted to just pretend at least…for a little while…"

"Do you like me at all?" He asked her, cutting her off.

Samantha looked up at him, thrown off balance by the question. "What?"

"Do you like me at all?" Murdock asked her again.

Sam's brows narrowed in confusion. She wiped her cheek where the damned tears were gushing with annoyance. "Are you crazy?" She asked him in response.

"You know the answer to that." He told her and then crossed his arms over his chest and huffed. "So I'll ask again, do you like me at all?"

To hell with it, she had nothing left to lose at this point. Honesty was a princess's duty or some crap…right? "I think we've established it's more than like." She said. She saw the barest glimmer of sparkle enter his dark green eyes…he still looked annoyed though.

"So my next question is; do you still think I'm going to up and bail out when this is all over and we've rained down righteous vengeance like Batman on the ass hats that've jacked your life up?" His voice was oddly calm even though he still looked ready to curb stomp someone into the dirt.

Samantha felt strangely like a five year old being scolded and told how stupid she was for trying to pet the neighbor's rabid cobra. "No…" She answered him, truthfully because she realized she'd been very very wrong to consider he'd be the type to cut and run. But life of late hadn't been the best in helping her judging of character.

"Good then. Lesson learned." The Ranger grabbed her suddenly and kissed her hard, making a thorough job of it. When he pulled away he kept hold of her and whispered in a rough voice right into her ear "Don't doubt me again baby…I don't like it."

Then he let go of her, nearly making her stumble. His expression had changed and he grinned widely, flopping down on the bed and kicking off his boots. "Looks like a Marx Brothers Marathon's getting ready to start." He patted the mattress next to him. "Come on princess, you can't go wrong with Groucho."

Samantha stood there gaping for a full two seconds trying to figure out exactly what had just happened. Then she decided it was really beyond her anyway and she really loved Duck Soup. So she sat down next to her knight who put an arm around her, pulling her close. Sam laid her head on his shoulder and found herself laughing and smiling along with him as the film started.

They stayed like that for most of the day, breaking only to snag the Fudge Rounds from the table and getting more soda and snacks from the vending machine. Murdock didn't think life could get much better and Sam would have agreed with him. It was a nice island of old movies, junk food, and surprise make out sessions when Robert Osborne came on to talk about how much he knew about the flick about to start.

Sometimes Samantha would have to tell Murdock to shut up and get back to the smooching when he decided to talk back to the screen, thinking he knew something more than the old guy did. Giggle fits were going to be a definite issue when it came to being the pilot's main squeeze.

As the day went on and turned into evening, both of them hoped secretly that Face wasn't quite speedy when it came to checking the voicemail box.


	31. Chapter 30

**DISCLAIMER: Wow, this is officially the most reviewed story I've written on . Thank you all for the great feedback and the reviews and kind words. I'm so happy to find that I'm not the only gal head over heels for HM Murdock. Since I was a young girl watching him on TV ala Dwight Schultz and now with the awesome that is Sharlto Copley reminding me why I love him so much. **

**So we're now at Chapter 30 (good god…). We have a bit of the rest of the team here but this is mainly Sam and Murdock again. Next chapter will see a lot more of the team and we're going to start getting into action mode. **

**This is a long chapter so I hope you enjoy it. Reviews feed my giant tape worm of word smashing.**

**Chapter 30**

A little after midnight Samantha was woken up by the feeling of something moving next to her arm. It kept doing it and finally she realized what it was. She lifted her head from where it had wound up on Murdock's chest. "Lancelot…you're vibrating." She said sleepily.

The pilot mumbled something along the lines of "Thank you very much…" and then the fact that yes, he was vibrating got through to his brain. He reached into the pocket of his jeans where the cell phone was and brought it to his ear, hitting the button while glancing over to see Samantha had fallen back to sleep. "Hello?" He said, trying to keep his voice down.

Face's voice on the other end of the line sounded annoyed and relieved. "Hello to you too partner."

Murdock was relived and happy to hear his friend and fellow teammate. "Tubbs, how's Elvis doing? He miss his daddy?"

Face's eyes rolled back wishing he'd never agreed to this particular code. "Yes, he misses his daddy a lot. Daddy shouldn't have left him for so long…that croc gets mighty cranky when you take off without a word like that."

Murdock grimaced. Great, well he knew he'd be in trouble at least a little. Well…more than a little. But he didn't regret a damn thing. "I know I'm not the best daddy to that little monster. But I think he'll agree it was worth it when he sees the treat I got him."

Face sighed. He couldn't fault the pilot really. It just irritated him that he'd done something so dangerous on his own. He loved him like a brother, but sometimes he wanted to throw him through a window. "I bet he will." He replied.

When they hung up Murdock had conveyed via code (to a more and more annoyed Face who hated the sockless look with a passion) all the details that had gone down and what they needed to know to come pick them up.

Face figured they'd be there by late afternoon. It was still around 1am and Boscoe was asleep…and Face didn't like waking him up on his own. The Colonel was researching the men that wanted Samantha out of the picture, and from what Face had heard they weren't the nicest bunch.

The team had found their own hotel room. Face walked back inside to the sounds of the Colonel tapping away at his laptop and BA snoring like a dying moose. Peck knew he wouldn't be getting any decent sleep that night but he was tired. He could tell Hannibal wasn't going to be sleeping anytime soon….he had the look in this eye. He was trying to learn all there was about their soon to be quarry. He'd probably be up all night.

Face swigged down the last of his now warm beer from the night stand and flopped down on the lumpy mattress, grateful for the earplugs he'd brought with him as Boscoe snorted, rolled over, and went from moose to asthmatic whale. He shoved the earplugs into his head and closed his eyes hoping for at least some sort of rest. He had a feeling he'd need it.

When Murdock hung up from his call with Face he saw that Sam was still asleep. He was sort of glad for that. She needed the rest. But sadly he wasn't anywhere near tired right then. His mind was going a hundred miles a minute in fifteen different directions, as was the norm. Even if he tried really hard he wouldn't be able to go back to sleep. Things were starting to go into motion and he needed to be prepared.

He slipped the phone back into his pocket and once again took a gander at his princess who was curled up next to him. The pilot couldn't keep the smile from his face as what was a really good contender for the best day of his whole damn life ran back through his head. She was a demanding little thing when she wanted to be. He'd forgotten what fun just good ol' making out was. Apparently he still had the knack. He kissed her forehead and slipped off the mattress. She made a little sound, a mumble that wasn't too happy, but settled back against the pillows still in dreamland. The pilot made sure the blankets were tucked around her before moving away.

Murdock sat down at the small table, staring out through a space between the room's curtains into the darkened parking lot of the motel. His green eyes missed nothing out there. If there was anything that might have been a threat, he'd recognize it. But even while that instinct was at play, in his head he was pondering on other issues and problems that would have to be dealt with. This ability of his was why he was such a great pilot. He was able to do half a dozen things or more at once in his brain. This was also part of the reason he was more than a little crazy because it was a very difficult thing to shut off.

He was worried, which was obvious. Not about the team coming to get them. Hannibal would get there; there was no doubt of that. They would figure out a way to keep her safe and get this whole thing resolved. How that resolution would happen was one of the things Murdock was pondering though. Another was what would happen when Samantha was back, surrounded by home. It wouldn't be easy for her. There was no way in hell that would be the case. He remembered the look in her eye when she'd realized they weren't that far away.

Murdock sighed heavily, running his fingers through his rumpled brown hair. There were no two ways about it…they would have to go back there to get the data she had hidden, because that data was the only way to keep her safe and put the bastards in jail. Her family would be another issue all together, something he didn't want to think about too much. He couldn't guarantee not to pummel the snot out of her brother if he somehow crossed paths with him. And he knew Samantha would be all sorts of messed up the minute she saw any of them. As tough as she was, they had betrayed her and stole the chance to say goodbye to her father from her. It wouldn't be easy on her no matter how much he tried to keep it that way.

He knew about being betrayed, he knew all about it.

The one nagging, evil bastard of a thought was way at the back of his mind though. It was the one he was trying to avoid thinking about, but it wouldn't shut up. How did he keep his promise to stick with her? He'd meant it, whole heartedly and God above knew it. But when this was all over…what would happen? Best case scenario they got the bad guys put away and Samantha was free and clear. That didn't mean he was. He was a wanted fugitive and escaped mental patient. He wasn't the kind you took home to mom (well he was great with mom's, not so much though when the CIA and FBI strike forces were showing up for dinner too.) Plus, he didn't think Samantha's mom was the sort that would appreciate a fella like him even without the baggage. She didn't seem to appreciate the angel that was her daughter so he doubted he'd be a fan of hers either truthfully.

The pilot and wannabe knight slunk a little lower in the chair. He'd figure a way. He wasn't going to give up, that wasn't his style. He'd figure a way to keep his promise and not high tail it and run. It might take a bit of trickery but it would happen. He was a genius, at least the test results said so (they also said he was a lunatic with schizophrenic tendencies but hey not everyone was perfect) he would figure this out.

Sometimes time got away from James Murdock and the late night, early morning hours slipped by him while he sat there. He had quite the movie theater in his head that played out things he'd lived through, things he'd seen, and things he imagined happening. Sometimes those imagined things would get confused with reality but that just kept stuff interesting.

He was in the middle of one of those imagined things, a wonderful little fantasy he'd just concocted about Samantha and himself swapping places with Batman and Catwoman and wow, black pleather was so underrated when he heard his name called. He snapped out of it and turned to see Samantha sitting up in the bed looking around for him. He quickly moved to sit by her on the mattress. "Hey princess. You okay?" He asked her.

Sam nodded, happy to see him. "Yeah, I was just sort of…you weren't where I left you." She blushed and grinned at him and his heart did a loopy loop in his chest.

He laughed. "I do get misplaced sometimes, but it's hard to lose me. I'm like a bad penny."

She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "You're not bad at all." She told him.

It was his turn to blush. "Aw shucks…Guinevere, you just haven't been around long enough to see me at my worst." He told her, hoping she never would.

"Bah, I've seen pretty bad." She shook her head and stared up at him with a wistful smile. She loved those lines that crinkled up around his eyes when he grinned; it made her sad when those went away. "And you've got enough good in there that I have a feeling it more than compensates for whatever bad shows up."

Murdock reached over touching her cheek, letting his fingers rest there for a moment. "I don't want you to ever see how wrong you are about that baby." His voice was soft, but solemn. He knew how much bad lived in him. Some of it had got unleashed on those scumbags back on the plane. And then there was what had happened in her room in Bay Ridge. If given the choice he would have killed that bastard too…but a lot slower than the fast and brutal method he'd used on the plane, he knew that for certain.

Looking at her pale face and the trusting eyes staring up at him, the ranger prayed he was worthy of that trust. His fingers slid down to her chin and grasping it, he leaned in and kissed her gently. Pulling away he sighed and was surprised to hear her laughing. "What's so funny?" He asked, giving her a strange look.

Samantha couldn't help the image or the words that had entered her head. She really needed to get a handle on the randomness that was going through her brain of late. "You're not bad; you're just drawn that way." She answered him, grinning and not able to help it.

Murdock rolled his eyes. Now he was more concerned about what he'd gotten himself into. "Woman, I swear you need to stop this whole getting me into a dress thing you've got secretly plotted in that pretty noggin of yours. Trust me; you don't want it to happen…it's not for the faint of heart or anyone else for that matter."

Samantha kept laughing. "You aren't helping me to not think about it and getting you drunk enough to sing Sweet Transvestite someday at a karaoke bar."

A look of abject horror crossed the pilots face. "Who are you, and what have you done with the nice girl I left in here?"

She laughed again and leaned up kissing his cheek while he still looked scared. "You're meeting Sam 2.0 who only comes out to play on weekends and special occasions." She slipped off the mattress and stretched her back while he stayed rooted to the spot. He had the strangest look on his face, a combination of fascination and fear.

"How many of you are there so I can keep track?" He asked her, his eyes wide.

Sam turned around, still grinning. She wanted to break him out of his sudden journey to the dark side and it looked like it had worked. "I've never counted, but I'm sure you'll figure it out." She was rewarded with him looking more scared which in turn made her laugh even harder.

The pilot shook his head and stood up, taking her glasses from the nightstand and handing them to her warily. "You're like a riddle wrapped in an enigma covered in chocolate and rainbows. I'm not sure if I should be afraid or in awe." He said.

She popped her glasses on and wrapped her arms around his neck. She felt a bit more brazen after yesterday and a lot more at ease with how she felt about him. Sam knew she was nuts (not that sort of nuts…maybe she was slightly truth be told) about her knight. And she was finally well and truly convinced he liked her more than a little too.

It was fun to yank his chain every so often. She needed fun for as long as she could have it because she knew the bad things were going to start happening soon. There was no way around that, not where they were going and not what was waiting there for them. "Well we do know how much you love chocolate don't we?" She asked him making sure to bat her eyelashes like a Betty Boop clone for effect. She saw his pupils dilate in a way that made her heart thud against her chest. His arms went around her waist and pulled her closer suddenly and Samantha had to tamp down the sudden need in her to squeal in glee or go Woof. It was a great dilemma to have.

Murdock on the other hand was debating on his dilemma. He really wanted to pursue the chocolate idea she'd just given him…which would take a while and would require more time than they actually had before the team showed up. That would be way awkward and probably embarrassing for everyone. Plus he'd need access to a fondue kit and a large stash of Hershey's Kisses…and probably plastic sheets.

He was also wondering if she really knew just how crazy she was driving him with these little gestures and suggestions she was starting to make. He guessed she had no idea the levels crazy he had going on in regards to her that went straight through every part of him. It might scare her some…or not judging by the way she was grinning at him. James Murdock was realizing he may have found his match when it came to deviousness and crazy on top of everything else. Yes, he'd definitely won some sort of cosmic lottery.

But he also knew they didn't have much time before the team got there and he had some things to go over with her and to prepare her for. He groaned aloud, his head falling back to look up at the ceiling as if to ask the Lord above for a break that wasn't coming. "Baby as much as I would really like to live up to that gleam in your eye we can't right now." He said resigned to the fact that their little island of awesome time was about to washed out by a tsunami of…well…crap.

"I know Lancelot…a girl can dream though." She hugged him tight resting her head on his shoulder. For such a thin guy he sure was cuddly. Which was just strange but she wasn't complaining. "The guys are on their way aren't they?"

He nodded. "Yep. They'll be here around 4 or 5 I reckon." He took a deep breath. "I'm sure I'll get a tongue lashing from the Colonel but so be it. I think all things considered it was more than worth it." He glanced down at her head where it was nestled against him and sighed. He hated to say it, but he'd probably disobey every five star general there had been, was or would be if it came down to it to keep her safe. It put him in a predicament for sure, but he wasn't going to argue what his heart told him was right.

Sam gave him a funny look. "Did you disobey an order coming to help me?"

Murdock looked uncomfortable with that question. "I wouldn't say…that…necessarily."

Her eyes narrowed behind her glasses. Sam figured she knew him well enough to know when he was fudging the truth. "You went AWOL didn't you?"

"We need to brush up your knowledge base of how the military works." He told her, patting her on the head. She punched his arm. Hard. "Hey!" He yelped.

"Don't condescend me Lancelot." She kept glaring.

Well it was obvious he couldn't win no matter what he did. Sighing for the hundredth time he told her the truth. "Maybe I wasn't supposed to leave and get on the plane. Maybe I was supposed to wait for back up or work out a plan with the rest of the team. But when I saw them taking you on board I knew I couldn't wait." Murdock paused, just the thought of it causing him to grow cold inside. "I knew if I didn't follow them I'd never see you again. I made a promise to you to keep you safe and that was what I was going to do." He placed a finger under her chin, still holding her close. "I wasn't going to lose you Samantha, no matter what anyone said, no matter what my orders were I wasn't going to lose you. So don't sass me about getting in trouble or going against a direct order. It wouldn't be the first time and it probably won't be the last…but I sure as hell wouldn't go back and change a thing. Understood?"

Sam gave a slight nod of her head, caught up in his eyes again as they looked down at her, the color of summer leaves. "I probably wouldn't be breathing right now if you hadn't…" She said, the words coming out a little shaky. She felt his arm tighten around her waist, saw his gaze darken. "But I don't want you in trouble with your team. You guys are friends; family…I don't like getting between that." She knew how precious it was to have people you could ACTUALLY trust; especially now after having realized how few she had in her life. Sam didn't want to be the reason he lost that.

Murdock knew where this was coming from. He could read it in her face. "Baby, you aren't going to break up this family of mine, as dysfunctional as it can be…and violent…and erratic…well we will just say we're different." He kissed her forehead. "All that we've been through together there's nothing that can do that I think in this world." He pulled back a little and gave her a big crooked grin. "That's sort of how I feel about you too."

A weird expression crossed his face then as Sam watched. "But don't go thinking I think of you like a sister…because…yeah that's not right at all. No, no…not like you're my sister. This is not Star Wars…or Game of Thrones…" He rambled off.

Samantha laughed. "Thank you for clarifying that Lancelot."

"Better safe than sorry." He took a deep breath, glad he had that sorted. "How do you feel about getting some breakfast?"

"That sounds great." She was actually hungry and craving pancakes for some reason. "Let me brush my teeth and make sure I'm not sporting Einstein hair."

He nodded and watched her walk off to the bathroom. He figured she'd take some of the more stressful things he was going to tell her better with the distraction of vast amounts of caloric goodness. Of course it would be even better if he could make her his world famous Raspberry White Chocolate Pancakes of Doom. Just the thought of those made him long for his own kitchen.

He'd had one once, way back when he lived on a base in Florida. That had been a few years back, more than a few actually. And yes the house was more or less painted cardboard…but it was a home. Sam would have liked that place, even if you could hear the neighbors next door doing everything, and he meant everything. He'd BBQ every weekend and have the guys over for beer and food. He'd had a nice set up with a big TV and oh god he missed his old movie collection. And his Xbox…and his model planes…he was bumming himself out and he needed to stop.

The one thing though that wasn't bumming him out though was inserting Samantha into those memories. Murdock did have a talent for changing reality in his head. He grinned, looking wistful as he waited for her to finish up, images of the two of them doing epic battle on a game console in his old living room after the guys had left having spent the day out in the backyard enjoying a sumptuous feast of ribs with all the trimmings and some very very cold beer.

Then when the battle was over they'd throw down their controllers, standing up with a challenge in each other's eyes, breathing heavy…adrenaline pumping…moving towards one another like two jungle cats ready to pounce…

"Hey…Lancelot…you okay?" Sam's voice asked from beside him making him jump back to reality. He'd looked really far away for a moment.

"Yes!" He squeaked. He cleared his throat and his noggin with a shake of his head. Boy that could have gotten embarrassing. "Yes, I'm great princess. Let's go."

He quickly led the way out of the motel room, making sure to keep a sharp eye out for anything suspicious. Murdock noticed that Sam was squinting at the sunlight and he felt guilty about that. He'd been keeping her locked away in that room for a while. He'd make it up to her though.

They both ordered the big breakfast from the fast food side of the truck stop, Samantha getting her typical massive coffee and Murdock getting his large milk. The pancakes were mediocre but they would do.

"So…I think we need to go over a couple things." Murdock knew it wasn't the smoothest segue into discussing what was going on but straightforward was sometimes a good thing.

Sam looked at him over a forkful of pancakes. "Okay?"

Murdock took a bite of his scrambled eggs that he'd doused with the equally mediocre hot sauce, and then wiped his mouth with a napkin. He took a deep breath. "So, uh…looks like there's more than a good chance the guys who kidnapped you have figured out your alive and you got away."

Samantha lost her appetite almost instantly. She suspected but hearing him say it didn't make it better. She put her fork down and slumped a bit in her chair. "That was probably going to happen."

The pilot shook his head. "I saw a video on the news some kid took on his cell phone. It showed our daring escape. So yeah, pretty good odds that they know it was us jumping out and not their guys. Also pretty good odds they are going to be combing the area looking for us. Hence my overwhelming need to keep you locked up in that room for so long."

Sam actually gave a tiny smile at that, even though the fear quotient was rising in her. "I thought you were keeping me locked up in there for other reasons."

Murdock turned ten shades of red at least. He stuttered. "That's not true…and…and…well…stop looking at me like that. Anyway…(here he cleared his throat and drank down the last of his milk) when the guys get here we're going to talk with the Col. I doubt he's been idle while we've been here. He likes to have a plan. And he likes to know every bit of info he can before he makes that plan. The boss man is a sucker for detail. But the part of this that is important is keeping you safe and getting that data."

Sam took a sip of her coffee. She put her cup down on the table, curling her now shaking fingers into a fist next to the napkin holder. "I know…the data is the most important part in this James."

The pilot placed his hand on top of hers. "Its important baby, but it's not the most important part." His voice was soft in the noise of the restaurant.

Samantha shook her head. "It is though. If I don't get that to the cops, the ones Dinello doesn't own…then I'm never going to clear my name and prove I'm not nuts. I'll never stop them from ruining what my dad built. And I can't help…I can't help but think that he knows what's happening even if he is gone and that kills me inside Lancelot."

He could see the pain it was causing her as he looked in her eyes. He squeezed her hand; his jaw tightening with that vast resolve that kept him going through all that life threw his way. "We'll get it to the cops Samantha, I promise you. And we'll clean up the mess your brothers made. You just got to stick with me princess. Now tell me, where's the hard drive at?"

Sam closed her eyes and took another deep breath, her fingers shaking even harder in his grasp. "It's back home." She said finally, nearly whispering. "I put it in a safety deposit box."

Murdock looked a bit more worried. He doubted it would be as simple as strolling in and having her pick it up. "Okay, so I'm assuming there's a key somewhere?"

She nodded. "Yeah, I left it and a note with my friend Brian."

Oh, a guy friend…well…okay. Murdock tried not to look too concerned about that. "Do they know about this…friend Brian? Does anyone back home know where he lives or who he is?"

Sam shook her head no. "I don't think they do. Brian and his boyfriend live in a town nearby where I grew up. I knew him in college and we were really good friends. But when everything fell apart with my dad and stuff went…to hell, we didn't talk as much. He was always trustworthy though and loyal. We took on some protestors together at the college and nearly got put in jail when one of them took a swing at me with their "Gays need to die" sign and I punched them. It got a little messy…but Brian had my back and I had his."

Murdock was impressed and relieved in equal measure. "So you sent him the key and told him to keep a hold of it for you?"

She nodded. "Yep and since everyone seems to still be looking to find me or kill me I'm going to guess no one has figured that out yet."

"Fair enough guess there. So what did you tell him?" Murdock asked her.

Sam let out a huff of breath. "As little as possible but I guess cryptic enough he'd listen. I told him to keep the key for me and to not let anyone but me pick it up. If something bad happened to me he was to take it to the bank, pick up what was there and take it to the newspaper…but not until then."

"You must trust him a lot." Her knight said looking thoughtful.

Samantha laughed. "Theater boys and girls like me tend to get along. We've fought our battles through the same sort of crap in high school. I think that cements the bond. Plus I know enough dirt on all the crazy Brian did in school that if I ever shared it with his boyfriend much less his mom he'd probably implode."

Well…he was a theater boy too although he was glad to hear her guy friend wasn't competition. Still though it was nice to hear her say that…Lord knew he'd been through his share of idiots growing up, no doubt the same variety as Sam and Brian. Being different tended to not be the popular route to go in school. "Okay baby, once the boss man gets here you'll let him know all those details. Don't leave anything out."

His voice was changing again, going into the tough Ranger mode Sam noticed. She wasn't as confident as he was that the man would still want to help her since one of his unit had broken ranks to save her. But she guessed she'd cross that bridge when they came to it.

Now as she watched his eyes grew a shade darker and sharper as they looked at her across the scarred table top. His fingers squeezed hers again. Samantha tensed readying herself for whatever he was going to say. "Baby you realize when we get there how hard this is going to be on you. You've been through the ringer because of these people. You're going to be surrounded by stuff that's going to remind you of that, of your dad…of all of it." His voice was a mixture of what she considered James and the Ranger, sweet concern and determined fire.

She nodded. "I know…" Samantha hated how tiny she sounded just then. "I know it's going to be tough."

Murdock looked away for a moment. She didn't know how hard it would be. He did. He knew from experience how the betrayal got under your skin, into the very center of you. How the loss and the reality of the institution changed you. How different it was outside for someone who'd never been there before once they got back out into it.

She'd not been in as long as his epic history of being in the nut house ranged, but she still had been inside. And it was a lie by her own family that had put her there. It was that same lie that had cost her more than just her freedom. She was tough, she was smart, and she was the best damn woman he'd ever met in his whole life. But she was still human and human beings could break easily. He was proof of that too.

The pilot turned back to her and gave her a sad smile. "It's going to be tougher than tough baby. But you have to promise me something. By the lord almighty Orson voiced god above (Murdock had told her the night before during a brief lull in a necking session that he truly believed the voice of God had to be the exact same one that Orson Welles had because how could it not be?) you have to swear that if you start feeling scared or freaked out or like you want to run that you come to me and tell me."

Samantha started to say something and he hushed her and kept talking. "If it feels like everything is starting to fall down around you and you can't breathe…or it all is too much and you need to just stop for a minute you tell me. I can't help you if I don't know you need the help. I had the team when I needed it…and well…you're stuck with me."

Sam bit her lip knowing that if it wasn't for the sheer fact they were in public and she'd look like an idiot she'd be crying and hugging him like a two year old. She'd never had anybody really care this much other than her dad. Mom just wasn't about the real emotional connection thing. She swallowed down the lump in her throat. "I swear I'll tell you if the walls are falling in James."

He grinned the crazy crooked grin at her suddenly, lifting her hand to his lips and kissing her knuckles with a wink. "Good girl. And if you break that promise Unicron is going to come and eat us all. That's how those swearing to the Orson god things work."

She laughed as he once again went from dead serious to being a complete goofball in the span of seconds. "Well in a world were something like Rodimus Prime exists it might be better to be eaten."

Murdock looked like he might be ill as he stood helping her from her chair like a gentleman. "Ugh…please…don't ever mention that name again."

She kept laughing and began singing "You got the touch…you got the power…"

He actually let out a cry of agony falling to his knees and begged for her to stop in the middle of the restaurant garnering a few curious stares and some cheering from youngest members of a family of four in the corner.


	32. Chapter 31

**Disclaimer: I really enjoy writing this story. It's one of the most fun I've ever had working on. And Murdock chews on my noggin often these days so here's another piece of the pie. **

**I still don't own anything but my original characters. This wasn't quite the chapter I started out with in mind, but then the scene with Murdock and Sam sort of popped into my head and I had to write it. It was too sweet a scene not to do. But we get mafia, we get our intrepid duo, and we get the team all in one chapter! Woohoo! **

**Reviews are crack. Let me know how it is going. I'm glad so many of you seem to enjoy this.**

**Chapter 31**

The gun was loud in the echoing chamber of the warehouse. The sound rang out for a full twenty seconds before it disappeared. The scent of the burning gun powder lingered. Stewart Foster shook uncontrollably as he opened his eyes. Tommy Boy Dinello looked like a male model version of Satan as he stood there, the gun aimed slightly to the right of Stewart where he was being held by a very large man with no neck.

"DO YOU FUCKING REALIZE WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO ME? THIS SHIT IS ALL OVER THE NEWS!" He was screaming and ranting and Stewart saw that Victor was even freaked out where he stood nearby him. That wasn't a good sign.

"Tommy I swear I didn't know..." Stewart started groveling for the fifth time and Tommy raised the gun, square at his head. He quickly shut up.

"Don't…speak…fuckface." Tommy grated the words out between his teeth. He really really wanted to shoot him, more than once truthfully. But he still needed him for the business. Plus Stewart owed him big time and he was going to collect. "First thing…I received a call from my guy near Canada whose plane your sister and her fucking army boy destroyed. You are paying him for the plane and any and all goods that were on it. He's not asking for compensation for the fucktards that got off'd so I can only assume they were just as asshole brilliant as you."

Stewart nearly protested the massive bill that would be but self-preservation kicked in and he stopped himself. He wasn't that asshole brilliant; he knew when to shut up sometimes.

Tommy moved the gun away finally, pointing it at the floor and rubbing between his eyes at the massive headache this whole bullshit fiasco had started. "This whole thing is starting to play out in front of every dipshit with a TV. That footage is everywhere and they are going to start putting pieces together. We need to nuke that fucking jigsaw before it happens." He laughed, harsh and hollow. "You're sister is like Laura Croft or some shit…I swear man a fucking parachute…how many lives does that bitch got? And she's teamed up with Rambo…I swear to god if I wasn't going to be screwed by this I'd want to watch the fucking movie."

Stewart didn't know if he should laugh too or cry…so he just stood there silently and tried not to shake anymore. His curly brown hair was drenched with sweat, fear sweat that was as cold as the look in Dinello's eye.

Tommy turned back on him in a heartbeat, glaring. "Second thing you are going to do is you're going to figure out where the fuck she's put this data. She's backed it up somewhere and she knows that's the only thing keeping her alive. She's going to come get it. So figure out where she's stashed it, I don't care what you do. I'm going to have this town crawling with eyes looking for her. My guess is, since she's obviously the smart one in the family, she stashed it somewhere secure but close by. So find it because if I find her first, I'm going to enjoy figuring out just how many lives she's got before she tells me where it is. Do you understand me asshole?" He snarled the last question, grabbing Stewart's shirt collar and jabbing the gun into his ribs hard.

Stewart nodded. "I…I understand Tommy…"

"Good, I'm glad we have that understanding Stewart. Now get the fuck out of here and do what I said." Tommy gestured to the lumbering giant named Sven that had been holding the loser to drag him back outside to the waiting car.

Victor walked over to his boss who handed him the gun without even a glance. Victor put it in the velvet lined box that was its home. "This is becoming way more of a pain in my ass than I could have imagined Vic." Tommy's voice was filled with disgust.

Victor nodded. He was actually surprised by how epic the escape had been and how much destruction one woman and one man could leave in their wake. "Yes sir, it is."

"When this is over remind me to off Foster myself while his mom watches, I really hate that bitch too." Tommy said heading back to his waiting car.

Victor opened the door for him. "You're not going to off her too?"

Tommy sat down in the plush leather seat with a sigh. "Nah, I need someone to still move the stuff. And even if she's a bitch she's got more of a brain than her son. I guess the women in that family have the brains and the balls."

At the truck stop it was getting closer to time for the team to show up. Murdock and Samantha had watched The Maltese Falcon in the hotel room and then gone out for lunch. The pilot would be glad to leave the truck stop simply for the fact he was getting sick of the food, the menu wasn't the best. But the company did make up for it.

Over burritos that were the size of their heads Murdock decided to find out more about his princess. He could already guess a thing or two, he knew some stuff, but he wanted to know more. And he doubted time to chit chat would be something they'd have a lot of in the next few days.

He chewed a bite carefully, looking over and wondering what he should ask first. Finally Samantha seemed to have enough with the perusal. "What…do I have a bug on me or something?" She asked him, wondering why he was looking at her so funny.

"Nah…nope…I'd tell ya if there was like a monster cicada crawling on your head." He dabbed at his lips with a napkin and folded his fingers in front him, leaning his chin on them like a curious 4th grader. "I was just wondering about you."

Sam took a drink of her soda and gave him a wary glance. "Wondering what?"

"Stuff and things…like what you did when you were growing up. What's your favorite movie of all time, how many times did you see Return of the Jedi. You know, important stuff." He grinned widely and she could tell he was completely serious.

Sam wanted to laugh, she felt like she was on The Dating Game suddenly. "You know a lot about me already Lancelot. You're still the mystery man for the most part." She told him and took a healthy bite of her own giant burrito.

He pouted at her. "That's not true. I'm an open book, but you're the femme fatale in this story doll. I don't know near enough for my rabid curiosity and general nosiness to be sated. So let's dish."

She rolled her eyes and took a drink of her soda to wash down the burrito. "I'm not a femme fatale by any stretch." She held up a finger. "Don't start…also if we're going to do this then it's quid pro quo Doctor Lecter."

He raised an eyebrow and in the eerie voice of Sir Anthony Hopkins replied "That's my line Clarice but you've got a deal."

A shiver ran up Sam's spine, one that should have been from being creeped out but wasn't. "You first." She raised her own eyebrow in challenge mimicking his stance of leaning his chin on his fists.

Humph, that wasn't the plan but fine he'd play along. "I've seen Return of the Jedi 86 times."

"88." She grinned at him smugly.

Hmmm… "My favorite movie is Jason and the Argonauts. Tom Hanks wasn't just whistling Dixie."

He saw her eyes get a bit brighter behind her glasses. He'd apparently said something right. "One of my favorite movies of all time is Jean Cocteau's Beauty and the Beast." She said.

Ah yes, tortured hero…and it showed good taste and imagination. Murdock nodded to himself…she was in fact perfect. But maybe he should make sure Face didn't slip into speaking French around her. That seemed to do something to women he still hadn't figured out yet.

"But Golden Voyage of Sinbad is way up there too." She added and gave him a smile that, if they weren't in public, might have caused him to do something the parents in close vicinity with young uns might not appreciate. Yeah, he would have to either punch or gag Face if he started speaking French.

"Well we already knew you had taste." He said trying to play it suave when he really wanted to dance up and down in his seat. "I do in fact think Johnny Cash was one of the greatest singers who has ever lived."

Sam laughed. "That's just having common sense now. Come on. But if you want to talk music, Lindsey Buckingham is one of the greatest guitarists who've ever lived."

Jesus he'd never let Face near her. There, it was decided. Murdock glanced over at the clock on the wall. It was getting near time. He should probably call…Face…and see where they were and how close. "I guess we need to head back. The gang may be getting here soonish and I need to call in."

Sam had just been getting into the "getting to know you" discussion. She hoped they'd have time for that later, but she had a feeling that was a fool's wish. "Okay, can I take this mass of burrito with me?"

Murdock laughed as he'd finished his off. "Sure thing lightweight." He told her as he busied himself with cleaning up their table.

"That's funny." She popped him on the arm as she stood up taking her Styrofoam box with her. Sam walked back into the truck stops gift shop area while he tossed their trash away. Her eyes alighted on something and she grinned. When Murdock came to stand beside her she grabbed his arm. "Come here, we're doing this." She told him and hauled him over to stand in front of a photo machine.

"Man I haven't seen one of these in a while." The pilot said. It was an old one that looked like it belonged in a 1980's arcade or a roller rink. "I think we might catch on fire in there."

Samantha, who'd never had her picture taken with a boy she liked when she was a kid, wasn't going to be denied this simple thing. "Come on…don't be a wusspuss. I've never gotten to take a picture with a boy in one of these." For some reason she thought that might motivate him.

Well damn, now he had to. Murdock had doubts the thing would even work, but it would cost him a whole dollar it looked like and plus he'd get to snuggle her in a tightly enclosed space. There were worst ways to catch fire. He'd been through a few so he knew that for a fact. "I can't deny you princess. Plus I am not as you eloquently put it, a wusspuss. Get in there while I feed this beast some quarters."

She disappeared behind the tattered curtain and he quickly followed her after depositing the rest of the quarters. The bulb inside was faded but still bright enough and the bench was hard and uncomfortable. Samantha had to squish into the corner to make room for him. She was beaming like it was Christmas. Murdock pulled the hat off his head and hoped he looked presentable. The timer was nearly done and the pictures would start. "You asked for this, if we burst into flame this is all on you." He told her.

Samantha shook her head grinning. "Shush it." She told him and leaned over and kissed his cheek. The light flashed and the first picture was of Murdock smiling while she planted one on him. Turnabout was fair play. When she had turned to face the camera the pilot quickly leaned over and kissed her cheek too. The second picture was Samantha's eyes growing big and a goofy smile on her face while her knight returned the favor.

"Okay quick…badass pose!" Murdock called out, finally getting into the spirit. They each quickly grew serious and glaring; with their fingers pointed right at the camera as if they were guns. It was very Boondock Saints in Sam's mind. The picture flashed.

Sam realized she still was wearing her glasses and decided for the last one that was not going to be the case. She took them off and quickly wrapped her arm around her knight. "Final shot!" She said and Murdock pulled her closer.

She laid her head on his shoulder out of habit and Murdock found himself suddenly very crystal clear. It didn't happen often, but in that few seconds before the camera flashed for the last time James Murdock's brain was quiet and he simply knew that this was what he was supposed to be doing at that moment. Usually feelings of sanity like that scared the bejesus out of him, but not then. That moment of sanity was like a perfect little jewel that he'd hold onto as tight as the woman in his arms. He'd keep it locked in a corner of his brain safely tucked away so it wouldn't get stolen from him.

And when the final picture was taken it showed the bright eyes of Samantha looking into the camera as she rested her head on the shoulder of a boy she liked more than a little bit. And it showed James Murdock, his cheek lightly pressing against the soft hair of the girl who'd seen who he really was. His face was calm, his eyes locked with the camera and his smile was a secret…just for her.

Once the flash had gone off Murdock seemed to reset back to normal, at least for him. He almost had to shake himself back to himself. Samantha noticed the odd look on his face. "You okay? It didn't blind you did it?"

He shook his head. "Nah, I'm fine and not on fire which is a surprise. But speaking of blind…where are your glasses?" He asked her confused.

"Oh I took em off for the last shot. At least one of them without them on so I don't look too doofy." She pulled them from the pocket of her jeans where she'd hooked them.

Murdock took the glasses from her hand. "You don't look doofy, you look like you. So stop that crap right now. I'm not hearing another word of that talk. Next time you do it I'll smack you on the behind, I don't care who is looking." He put them on her and kissed her quickly on her slightly open mouth, then slipped out of the photo booth. Sam realized he wasn't lying. He'd totally spank her in front of people. This was a whole new area of good god what have I gotten myself into…even if he was trying to up her self-esteem it was a totally Murdock way of doing it. She half laughed, half sighed and then stood and stepped out of the booth.

"Have they started printing yet?" She asked him grabbing her burrito box before she forgot it. There was still an entire cow left to it, or at least it seemed like it.

The machine started making horrible noises, so horrible they backed away in fear. "Jesus!" Murdock made the sign of the cross. "If that isn't them printing then Satan's going to puff out of that thing in a cloud of smoke from the sound of it."

Sam looked disappointed. Maybe he was right and it would catch on fire. Or the devil might walk out, it did sound possessed. "Well, at least you can get your dollar back from the guys up front."

Murdock could see she was bummed out, but the machine kept on chugging along so maybe it would turn out okay. "To heck with the dollar, I want pictures with my gal and I won't be denied." He told her and then gave the machine a swift kick with his boot.

Out popped one and then a second strip of photographs from the slot on the side. Sam was almost afraid to look. But she warily reached over and pulled them out. "Wow…would you look at that." She said and felt Murdock's chin settle on her shoulder as he peered over it.

The pilot felt a little flitter in his chest as he looked down and saw the first image of himself and his princess beaming up at him. He hadn't told her the fact that he'd never really had a picture of himself with a girl either. Never had a chance or the inclination really, not with his history of course. But as he looked at the photos on that little strip of paper he saw a rarity…he was stupidly happy in them. "You could be on a cover of a magazine girlie." Murdock said, and then thought about what he'd just said, "but not a girlie magazine…no…not gonna happen you are so not allowed to do that."

Samantha laughed. "Stop being a dork you dork. These turned out pretty good. I'm amazed and hey, we could be avenging Boston bad ass's here." She pointed to what would forever be in her head, the Boondock shot. She loved the last picture though, it was her favorite. Not because of her lack of glasses but because James looked like…James. He was handsome as heck in that picture and it was odd but it was if all those personalities he had flitting around in his mind were at ease behind those eyes of his.

"You could be a cover boy here." She pointed at the shot. "But I don't think I'm letting you near Playgirl. Maybe GQ…I bet you could rock a suit." Sam turned to glance at him grinning wickedly, her voice nearly purring on the word "suit."

"Play your cards right baby and I'll dig out the Versace we use on special occasions." He told her, trying not to blush at the compliment or the way that purr in her voice made him suddenly feel as though the room was a 100 degrees. There was in fact a Versace three piece that was stored away that he'd worn a whole once for a mission a few years ago. It still fit he was proud to say, or would if he ever got to wear it again. BA had nearly knocked him out during that time because he just felt the need to be Sean Connery for a day or two or three. BA was not a Bond fan.

He was glad he'd gone ahead and chanced it that it wouldn't burst into flame and went for the two copies. He wanted his own to keep with him forever and always. He reached over and took the strip on top. Sam watched as he folded it carefully and slipped it into his wallet for safe keeping. "Alright baby, let's go call the boys and prepare to blow this pop stand."

They head back to the same, less busy area outside away from the fuel tanks. Murdock punched the numbers on his phone for the one Face was using and waited. He kept one eye on Samantha as she leaned against a light pole and looked out towards the highway. Face picked up on the second ring.

"Hey Sonny, how's the boat?" Face asked. He was sitting in the passenger seat of the minivan.

"Only rocking slightly." Murdock replied kicking a rock with the toe of his boot. "So when are you drifting this way Tubbs?"

Murdock heard Face asking BA who was no doubt driving something. "Oh I'd say you'll have time for a couple of daiquiris before we get there."

That meant two hours. They were close and honestly Murdock would be glad when they got there. The run of good luck he'd been having was sure to run out. "Sounds good, I'll make sure to have one ready for you."

He hung up and headed over to collect Sam.

Face flipped his phone closed and settled back into the seat. "How's the fool doing on his own?" BA asked him while taking an Exit ramp.

"He's not on his own; he's got his girlfriend with him." Face chuckled as he said it.

"Girlfriend? She's his girlfriend now?" BA glanced over at him with a knowing look. He'd been wondering if the fool had figured it out on his own or not.

"Well he didn't say it out right but I'm gonna tell ya BA," Face took a sip of his bottled water. "When I called him last night I'm pretty certain I woke him up. And he sure was talking pretty quiet for a guy who was alone."

BA didn't look convinced. "Don't mean they're official or nothing man. She coulda been just nearby sleeping is all."

Face laughed. "True enough. Call it a gut feeling then."

Hannibal piped up from the back seat where he was scanning through some downloaded PDF's of local newspapers giving details of supposed Dinello crime activity. They weren't light reading. "If you don't mind I'd appreciate you two getting this bizarre soap opera fix out of the way before we get there. I need Samantha Foster to be able to focus and not be distracted by the two of you trying to figure out her dating history or future. That includes goading Murdock into hyperactive mode."

BA and Face got a little straighter in their seats, staring out towards the road. "Sorry boss…" Face replied. "But you have to admit it's going to be interesting to watch right?"

"Face…" Hannibal rolled his eyes. "Not everyone has the same Jerry Springer voyeuristic tendencies as you." He looked over at the younger man then, barely keeping his smile in check. "Plus with your history I wouldn't be talking about anyone's love life."

BA had no intention of keeping his smile or laughter in check at that remark. Face actually looked like he shrank in his seat, his legendary ego deflated down a size.


End file.
